BJP Dares Bihar Government to Handover Bridge Collapse Probe to CBI

The BJP on Wednesday dared the Bihar government to handover the probe into the collapse of an under-construction bridge in Bhagalpur district to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), alleging that efforts are being made to protect the culprits.

The bridge over the Ganga river collapsed on Sunday. Bihar government officials said the bridge was pulled down as part of a preventive exercise following expert advice as it had design flaws.

The state government has directed the building construction department to initiate an inquiry into the incident.

“This is not the first time the bridge has collapsed… Who are those that the chief minister, deputy chief minister and top officials are trying to protect by not letting the inquiry go in the right direction,” Union Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat asked at a press conference at the BJP headquarters here.

The BJP condemns the way efforts are being made to protect those involved in the collapse of the bridge, he said.

The 3.16-km-long bridge, which was supposed to connect Khagaria district with Bhagalpur, has collapsed twice in 14 months. The first time it had collapsed on Bhagalpur’s Sultanganj side in April last year and the second time on the Khagaria side.

Shekhawat dared the Bihar government to hand over the probe into the incident to the CBI.

“The truth will come out if the state government hands over the case to the CBI for investigation,” he said.

A comprehensive probe should be conducted into the incident to identify those involved and unravel the truth behind it, he added.

On Monday, Kumar had said strict action would be taken against those found guilty in the bridge collapse incident. He said he had also asked the department concerned to probe why the project, which was started in 2014, was running behind schedule.

(This story has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from a syndicated news agency feed – PTI)