On Tuesday, 24th December, Samajwadi Party leader Akhilesh Yadav shot himself in the foot after he was fact-checked by the Railways for spreading misinformation regarding the Vande Bharat train en route to Goa from Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus, Mumbai. He indicated that the Vande Bharat train that was supposed to reach Goa lost its way and reached Thane region in Maharashtra’s Mumbai instead. However, the rail authorities slammed the leader for spreading misinformation and said that it had ultimately reached its destined station at Madgaon in Goa.
“Rasta bhatak gayi Vande Bharat’ – jana tha Goa, nikal gayi Kalyan (Vande Bharat lost its way – was supposed to go to Goa but ended up in Kalyan),” Yadav said in an X post calling BJP government as ‘double blunder’ government and not ‘double engine’ one.
In the same post, he also commented that the BJP government had lost track of its governance. “BJP has also put the country’s vehicle on the wrong track,” he added.
As per the reports, CSMT-Madgaon Vande Bharat deviated from its regular path due to technical issues at Diva station in Thane following which the train to its destination was delayed by 90 minutes. Instead of moving towards the Panvel route, the train had to take a turn to Kalyan to repair the glitch.
The rail officials clarified the matter and slammed Yadav for spreading misinformation. “Sir, it is factually incorrect information. The train was diverted because of a problem en route. The train had started from its scheduled station i.e. Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus, Mumbai, and arrived at the predetermined scheduled station i.e. Madgaon,” the DRM Mumbai said in an X post.
Sir, it is factually incorrect information.
— DRM Mumbai CR (@drmmumbaicr) December 24, 2024
The train was diverted because of a problem en route. The train had started from its scheduled station i.e. Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus, Mumbai and arrived at the predetermined scheduled station i.e. Madgaon. https://t.co/FJLdzbAmXL
The rail officials confirmed that the train deviated from its original course due to a technical snag at the Diva station in Thane. “The express train diverted to the Kalyan route due to the problem instead of the original route that would have it bound for the Panvel station on the Diva-Panvel railway line,” Central Railways Chief Public Relations Officer, Swapnil Nila said.
She further said that the incident happened due to a failure in the signalling and telecommunications system at point number 103. “This point lies between the down fast line and the fifth line at Diva Junction, a key location where trains bound for the Konkan region transition to the regular route towards Panvel station. The train then moved to Kalyan station and then reversed to Diva, from where it continued its ongoing journey to Madgaon on the Diva-Panvel route,” she added.