Karnataka Deputy CM Criticizes BJP and JDS for Politicizing Ahmedabad Plane Crash

On Monday, D.K. Shivakumar, the Deputy Chief Minister of Karnataka, accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Janata Dal (Secular) of engaging in 'politics over corpses' regarding the recent plane crash in Ahmedabad. He emphasized that the Congress party would not politicize this tragic incident. Speaking to reporters at his residence in Sadashivanagar, he stated, "Such incidents should never occur in any country... I will not engage in politics over this issue." He further remarked that the Congress party would not stoop to the level of the BJP and JDS by attempting to politicize the Ahmedabad plane crash. Shivakumar expressed concern for the students of BJ Medical College who are in shock after losing their peers in the accident.

Shivakumar highlighted that tragedies like the Ahmedabad plane crash should not happen anywhere in the world. He described the crash site as devastating, noting that if the aircraft had traveled just 500 meters further before crashing, it could have resulted in thousands of fatalities. Unfortunately, many medical students lost their lives in this incident, leaving numerous individuals in shock. A delegation from the Congress party, led by Mallikarjun Kharge, visited some of the injured to inquire about their health.

When questioned about the scrutiny faced by Union Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu, Shivakumar refrained from criticizing him. He acknowledged that there were several technical aspects related to the Ahmedabad plane crash. He stated, "We refuse to engage in politics over the dead. While we can discuss various matters and compare how situations were handled in the past, we do not wish to lower ourselves to that level." He also mentioned that he is not an expert and would not criticize the Union Aviation Minister at this time. Regarding Kumaraswamy's comments about the taxes collected by the state government, he expressed happiness and wished for a swift recovery for the injured.