Delhi blast ‘failure of government,’ says Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge; demands exemplary punishment for culprits

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge called the Delhi blast a government failure, demanding a fair probe and strict punishment for those responsible. He said the issue will be raised in Parliament’s winter session and commented on upcoming Bihar poll results

Bengaluru: Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Wednesday termed the blast in Delhi as a “failure of the government” and demanded that the perpetrators of the terrorist act be given exemplary punishment so that it acts as a deterrent.

It was unfortunate that such an incident happened in the national capital, where top agencies, that are tasked with ensuring security, including the Intelligence Bureau, functioned, he said.

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Despite the presence of all such agencies in Delhi, the government has failed, Kharge alleged and added that his party would wait for a complete report.

Speaking to reporters, Kharge, who is the leader of opposition in Rajya Sabha, said that the Congress party has sought an impartial probe into the blast and demanded that the government ensure stringent punishment to those who were behind it.

“The culprits must be punished severely so that others should be afraid of doing it,” he said, adding his party would raise the issue in the Parliament next month, during the winter session.

“Now they have handed over the case to the National Intelligence Agency. Let the investigation report be out. The Parliament session will begin on December 1. After that, we will see,” Kharge added.

Speaking about the Bihar election, the Congress president said that the exit polls claimed NDA was leading in Bihar and that the outcome was not encouraging for the Mahagathbandhan.

The exit polls had also said that Congress was leading in Haryana, but the results were just the reverse. Hence, he said, “Let us wait till November 14 when the results will be out.”