Priyanka Gandhi slams Centre for refusing to declare Wayanad landslides a ‘national disaster’

NEW DELHI: Congress general secretary and party’s candidate from Wayanad, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, has hit out at the central government over its refusal to declare Wayanad landslides a national disaster.

In a post on X, Priyanka called it a “shocking injustice” to the victims and criticised the central government for “denying essential relief to those in dire need”. The central government has refused to declare the landslides in Wayanad a national disaster, as requested by the state.

Despite the landslides that devastated Wayanad, the BJP govt refuses to declare it a national disaster, denying essential relief to those in dire need. This isn’t just negligence; it’s a shocking injustice to those who have suffered unimaginable loss. The people of Wayanad…

— Priyanka Gandhi Vadra (@priyankagandhi) November 14, 2024

“Despite the landslides that devastated Wayanad, the BJP govt refuses to declare it a national disaster, denying essential relief to those in dire need. This isn’t just negligence; it’s a shocking injustice to those who have suffered unimaginable loss”, Priyanka said.

Drawing parallels with the alleged negligence towards Himachal Pradesh, Priyanka dubbed the “singling out and lack of support” unprecedented and unacceptable. “The people of Wayanad deserve better. PM Narendra Modi visited Wayanad at the time of the tragedy, he witnessed its effects firsthand, yet his government is playing politics and withholding crucial aid. The same was done with the people of Himachal Pradesh at a time of great distress for them. In the past, tragedies of this magnitude were not politicized in this manner. The singling out and lack of support for victims of these tragedies due to political reasons is unprecedented and totally unacceptable”, she said.

Earlier this month, Communist Party of India (CPI) MP P Sandosh Kumar, in a letter, sought urgent intervention from Prime Minister Narendra Modi towards the rehabilitation of landslide victims in the area of Wayanad including Chooralmala.

Along with the letter, he also sent a photo of the little girl Nysa who lost her father and siblings in the landslide, saying, “to remind you, Nysa Mol is a little girl with whom your image had gone viral when you visited the landslide-affected areas of Wayanad including Chooralmala on the 10th of August 2024, 10 days after massive landslides wreaked havoc in the region”.

Kumar, who visited Nysa’s residence a few days back, claimed in the letter to PM that, she is still living in a rented accommodation provided by the state government. The CPI leader further added that coming back to the life of little Nysa Mol, she is living in a rented accommodation provided by the Government of Kerala with her mother and grandmother.

“The family is getting Rs 300 per day from the Kerala government for their needs. Your meeting with the little girl inspired hopes not just for her family, but for thousands of others who were crushed under the natural calamity, but to no avail. While the Kerala government, with assistance from many voluntary and civil society organisations, is doing its level best to provide relief and rehabilitation, assistance, as required from the Union government, has not reached Kerala in the way it should have. Little Nysa Mol got Rs 1 lakh in two instalments from the Prime Minister’s Relief Fund while the Kerala government gave her Rs 6 lakh after she lost her father and siblings”, Kumar wrote.

A series of landslides in Wayanad were triggered by torrential rainfall that killed hundreds of people in the state in June this year. The landslides had occurred in Punjirimattom, Mundakkai, Chooralmala, and Vellarimala villages in Meppadi panchayat, Vythiri taluk in Wayanad district. (ANI)