The tragic deaths of five people and the hospitalisation of more than 200 after the Indian Air Force (IAF) airshow at the Marina seafront in Chennai on Sunday, have triggered a massive political controversy with the BJP calling the incident “a state-sponsored murder” and holding the DMK government and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin directly responsible.
“The tragic deaths of five people and more than 200 people being hospitalised in the Chennai air show is not a tragedy, it is a state-sponsored murder and disaster for which the DMK government and Chief Minister (MK Stalin) is directly responsible, as his and the government’s priority is the elevation of dynasty and corruption,” BJP leader Shehzad Poonawalla said.
The BJP leader further demanded that Chief Minister Stalin step down and take accountability for the loss of lives, stressing that both the CM and his health minister were to be blamed.
Poonawalla’s comments come after five people were killed and several others were hospitalised during the event organised by the Indian Air Force. According to reports, the deaths were caused by dehydration and extreme exhaustion, but some of the air show attendees alleged poor crowd management and lack of facilities.
However, in a sharp retort to the BJP’s allegations, the ruling DMK sought to play down the tragedy, saying such incidents have happened in many temple festivals.
“People were gathered in large numbers at the Marina Beach. The event was conducted by the Indian Air Force… The crowd was unexpectedly huge, which Marina could not hold. Such kinds of incidents have also happened in many temple festivals,” DMK leader TKS Elangovan said.
He also defended the government’s response, stating, “Opposition leaders will always accuse us of anything. They will not manage anything. More than 100 people were taken to the hospital. The state government has made all the arrangements.”