File photo of Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi. | Photo credit: Shiv Kumar Pushpakar
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday (Jan 2, 2026) hit out at the two-engine BJP government in Madhya Pradesh after at least 10 people died allegedly due to contaminated water in Indore, saying Prime Minister Narendra Modi is always silent whenever the poor die.
Mr. Gandhi alleged that Madhya Pradesh has become the epicenter of misgovernance, citing various cases of casualties allegedly due to cough syrups, poor sanitation in government hospitals and now contaminated water.
“In Indore, water was not distributed, but poison, and the administration remained in a deep sleep,” he said in a post on X in Hindi.
Also Read I Indore water contamination: What we know so far
“Every home is full of grief, the poor are helpless – and moreover BJP leaders are making arrogant statements. Those who lost their lives and livelihoods needed consolation; the government offered arrogance,” he said.
MP Chief Cabinet Minister Kailash Vijayvargiya on Thursday (Jan 1, 2026) courted controversy after he used an objectionable word – ghanta (loosely translated to nonsense) – on camera when a TV journalist asked him about the water contamination incident.
In his post, Mr. Gandhi asked why complaints were not heard when people repeatedly complained about dirty, smelly water.
“How did the sewage get mixed with drinking water? Why was the supply not stopped in time? When will action be taken against the responsible officers and managers?” asked the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha.
“These are not trivial issues – they demand responsibility. Clean water is not a favor, it is a right to life. And the BJP twin engine government, its careless administration and insensitive leadership are solely responsible for destroying this right,” he said.
“Madhya Pradesh has now become the epicenter of bad governance – deaths from cough syrup, rats killing children in government hospitals and now deaths from drinking sewage-contaminated water. And whenever the poor die, Modi keeps it quiet, as always,” Mr Gandhi said.
Indore Mayor Pushyamitra Bhargava said on Friday (January 2, 2026) that he had received information about 10 deaths due to an outbreak of diarrhea caused by contaminated water in the Bhagirathpura area of the city.
However, local residents claimed that 14 individuals, including a six-month-old infant, had died as a result of the health crisis. The Ministry of Health has not confirmed this claim.
Chief Medical and Health Officer (CMHO) Dr. Madhav Prasad Hasani said on Thursday that laboratory test reports from the city’s medical college confirmed that drinking water from the site was contaminated due to a leak in the pipeline.
However, the CHO did not share the detailed findings of the report.
Administrative officials also avoid giving clear information about it.
Officials said the leak was found in a main drinking water supply pipe near the Bhagirathpura police station, at a site over which a toilet had been constructed. They claimed the spill led to the contamination of the water supply.
Over 1,400 people have been affected by vomiting and diarrhea in Bhagirathpur in the past nine days.
Published – 02 Jan 2026 15:22 IST
