Death toll in stone quarry collapse in UP climbs to 6
Sonbhadra (UP), Nov 17 (PTI): Five more bodies have been recovered from the rubble of a stone quarry that collapsed in Uttar Pradesh's Sonbhadra district, taking the death toll to six, an official said on Monday.
District Magistrate, Sonbhadra, BN Singh said the bodies were recovered on the intervening night of Sunday and Monday.
"One body was recovered in the night. The deceased was identified as Indrajit (30), a resident of Panari, Obra. The other deceased persons have been identified as Santosh Yadav (30), brother of Indrajit, Ravindra alias Nanak (18), Ramkhelavan (32) and Kripashankar."
The body of Raju Singh (30) was recovered on Sunday.
Uttar Pradesh minister and local MLA Sanjeev Kumar Gond, who visited the spot in the Billi Markundi mining area after the collapse on Saturday evening, said, "Around a dozen labourers might be trapped under the debris".
Additional Director General of Police (ADG), Varanasi Zone, Piyush Mordia on Sunday said clearing the rubble is taking time due to presence of several heavy stones.
Sonbhadra Superintendent of Police (SP) Abhishek Verma had said they were informed about the incident around 4.30 pm on Saturday at Obra police station.
The caller said several workers were buried under debris after a portion of a stone quarry operated by Krishna Mining Works collapsed.
The police have booked the owner of Krishna Mining Works and his business partners, Madhusudan Singh and Dilip Keshari, both residents of Obra, on the complaint of Chhotu Yadav -- a resident of Parsoi Tola -- who said his two brothers were trapped under the rubble, the SP said.
The three accused are yet to be arrested.
Samajwadi Party's Robertsganj MP, Chotelal Kharwar, alleged that the mine was illegally run by mafia in collusion with local police.
"There is a possibility that 12 to 15 people are trapped under the stones. Tribals are being killed in many ways, and large-scale illegal mining is being carried out in this area. One or two such incidents occur every month in this region, but how the mining mafia manages everything remains unknown," he said.
Illegal mining is being carried out in collusion with the police and administrative officials, the MP alleged.
Kharwar claimed he was stopped by the police from meeting the kin of the trapped mine workers.
He also demanded Rs 50 lakh in compensation for the victim's family and a government job for each family.
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BJP, Opposition in war of words after Constitution Amendment Bill defeat
New Delhi (PTI): The BJP and the Opposition on Saturday engaged in a war of words over the issue of the implementation of women's reservation in legislatures, with Union minister Kiren Rijiju saying the parties which stalled the Constitution Amendment Bill will face the wrath of women.
The Opposition accused the government of delaying implementation by linking it with delimitation and using it to serve its political interests.
While the BJP termed the development a “black day” and accused the Congress and other opposition parties of betraying women, the Congress and its allies asserted that the quota law, passed in 2023, should be implemented immediately and accused the government of playing politics over it.
Parliamentary Affairs Minsiter Kiren Rijiju accused the Congress of being anti-women, and said it will have to face their wrath across the country.
“They will have to face the anger of the women of the country. This is a black stain on the Congress and its allies, one that they will never be able to erase. This Bill was about giving historic representation to women—what objection could there have been?” he told reporters in the Parliament House complex.
"The opposition is celebrating after depriving women of their rights; women of the country will teach them a good lesson," he added.
Union minister Shobha Karandlaje targeted Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi, alleging that the Opposition’s actions had undermined both women’s empowerment and regional representation.
“They have harmed south India as well, where seats could have increased by over 50 per cent. Women were supposed to get reservation, but they have been denied that opportunity. This has been done under the leadership of Rahul Gandhi,” she alleged.
BJP MP Bansuri Swaraj accused the Congress and the INDIA bloc of deceiving women and backtracking on their earlier stand. “They have betrayed the trust of women, and we will take this story of your deception to every citizen,” she said.
Swapna Verma, general Secretary, BJP (Madhya Pradesh) Mahila Morcha, said, “Congress and its INDI alliance have once again exposed their anti-women mindset. Despite the sincere appeal of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi ji for collective, and non-partisan support, those driven by political obstinacy chose to defeat not just a Bill, but the aspirations of an entire nation.”
Opposition leaders accused the government of delaying implementation and using the issue for political gain in Assembly elections in West Bengal and Tamil Nadu.
Congress MP Shashi Tharoor said the opposition is not against women’s reservation, but has objected to its linkage with delimitation. “We are fully in support of women’s reservation and would have happily passed the Bill on Friday itself. Our objection was not to reservation, but to linking it with delimitation,” he said.
Tharoor said delimitation raises “fundamental questions” about the country’s future and cannot be rushed.
“This is a very important issue for India’s unity and democracy. It requires serious, wide-ranging discussion -- not something to be decided in a two-day session.
Alleging political motives, he added, “This was a political game, not about women. Women were being used to serve short-term political interests. If the government brings a new Bill in the Monsoon Session without linking it to delimitation, we will pass it.”
"There must be a serious discussion involving all parties and states, especially in light of future Census data and the framework for a new delimitation exercise.”
Congress MP K C Venugopal said there is no disagreement on women’s reservation and demanded its immediate implementation.
“Their agenda was to link delimitation with women’s reservation, which has failed. They wanted delimitation according to their convenience, like in Assam and Jammu and Kashmir, by redrawing constituencies. That has failed.
“We demand that, without any delay, the 2023 women’s reservation law be implemented,” he said.
CPI(M) leader John Brittas alleged that the government’s strategy had been exposed in Parliament.
“The dubious and diabolical game plan of the government has fallen flat. They were using women as a shield to mislead the nation. If they have even an iota of sincerity, let them implement one-third reservation based on the present strength of legislatures,” he said.
“The opposition will jointly defeat any ulterior motives and designs of this government,” he added.
Samajwadi Party leader Ram Gopal Yadav questioned the legislative process and alleged political motives. “This historic Bill was already passed in 2023. Why was there a need to bring amendments again? Even after that, the earlier law was notified. So what was the need for discussion and voting?” he asked.
“The whole country knows this was done with elections in West Bengal in mind. When you knew you did not have a two-thirds majority, what was the point of bringing it? This shows there was a political angle, not genuine intent,” he said.
The Constitution Amendment Bill, which sought to operationalise women’s reservation and increase the strength of the Lok Sabha, was defeated in the Lower House on Friday as it failed to secure the required two-thirds majority.
While 298 members voted in favour of the Bill, 230 voted against it. Out of 528 members who voted, the Bill required 352 votes for passage.
According to the Bill, Lok Sabha seats were to be increased to a maximum of 850 from the current 543 to operationalise the women’s reservation law before the 2029 parliamentary polls, following a delimitation exercise based on the 2011 Census. Seats were also to be increased in state and Union Territory assemblies to accommodate 33 per cent reservation for women.
