“Government doesn’t exist here,” Rahul Gandhi says after meeting Balaghat families who have lost children

Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Thursday (Oct 1, 2026) accused the Union and Madhya Pradesh governments of leaving the tribal community without basic amenities while speaking in Balaghat, where more than 30 tribal children have died in the past three months due to monsoon-related diseases, poor immunity and lack of access to healthcare.

Topping off these tragedies with the failure of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government in the state, Mr Gandhi, the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, said he would raise tribal issues in Parliament.

“Facilities like health, education and employment that the government was supposed to provide have been shut down here. It seems as if these people are stuck in the middle of India and the Indian government and Madhya Pradesh government are not present here,” he told reporters after visiting the affected families.

“The Government Has Disappeared”

Mr. Gandhi said the government was not providing any support to the people of the area in terms of land registration, forest rights or MGNREGA, the rural jobs program that has now been replaced by Viksit Bharat-Garantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission — Gramin (VB-G RAM G).

The Congress leader, who was on his second visit to the state in two weeks, claimed that half of the families who lost their children were yet to receive any compensation from the government. A local woman nodded as he spoke and said, “(We haven’t received it).

“I want to tell the government to fulfill its responsibility. At least give them their land title which they are entitled to under the Forest Rights Act. You have changed the name of MGNREGA but at least start it here. Give them the schools and hospitals they deserve,” he said. “I don’t know what world you are in. You talk about development 24 hours, but corruption happens 24 hours. But when our tribal brothers are in need, you disappeared,” he added.

“Total failure of government”

Mr Gandhi also claimed that women in the area face cuts in their contribution under the state’s Ladli Behna scheme “if they get money in some other scheme”.

“If you’re running two programs, then they should get the benefits of both of them. I’m sad to see those conditions,” he said.

Asked about other tragedies, such as the deaths of children in neighboring Chhindwara due to adulterated cough syrup last year and the deaths related to water contamination in Indore earlier this year, Mr Gandhi said: “There has been a total failure of the government in Madhya Pradesh. You can see it wherever you are. It is 100% failure of the government.”

No access to health care

In Balaghat’s once Naxal-rich Birsa block, more than 30 children have died since July due to a range of infectious diseases such as measles, malaria, respiratory disease, malnutrition, anemia and dehydration. The state government has so far approved compensation to the families of 32 deceased children.

Although authorities have accused local residents of relying on practices such as faith healing, affected families have claimed they have no access to hospitals and say health workers are not coming to their villages in remote areas.

Earlier in the day, Mr Gandhi blamed the “RSS-BJP mindset” for the problems faced by the tribal community in the state.

“These troubles of the Madhya Pradesh tribals are part of the BJP-RSS mindset which does not see them as the original owners of India but as forest dwellers. It wants to grab not only water, forests and land but also education, employment and dignity and in its arrogance refuses to listen to anything,” he wrote on X.

‘No Naxalism’

However, MP BJP president Hemant Khandelwal hit out at Mr Gandhi and blamed the Congress for the lack of development in Balaghat.

“Under the leadership of Union Home Minister Amit Shah ji and Chief Minister Mohan Yadav ji, Balaghat is moving forward towards development of education, health and infrastructure, free from Naxalism,” Mr. Khandelwal said in Bhopal. “Rahul Gandhi should also come to Madhya Pradesh and explain under whose rule Naxalism flourished? Did he ever visit the family members of the then Congress government minister Lakhiram Kawre ji to console them after his brutal killing of Naxals? Who was responsible for Balaghat’s backwardness? Rahul Gandhi should also provide answers to these questions,” he added.

Published – 01 Oct 2026 20:51 IST