Gateman should have asked the driver to slow down the train: Navjot Kaur Sidhu

Former Navjot Minister Kaur Sidhu said Saturday that the person responsible for closing the railway barrier could have warned the driver to slow down the train because several people were on the railway.

Sidhu was the main guest of the Dussehra celebrations held near Joda Phatak, where 59 revelers were shot dead by a train. She was accused of leaving the scene of the accident without worrying about the victims.

She said that several announcements had been made since the scene during the event, inviting people to enter the Dhobi ghat to watch the effigies on fire.

The railwayman who was responsible for closing the barrier should have seen that the Dusshera event was taking place there, she said.

"Could not he see the train coming in and the people on the railroad track he was there, he could have alerted the driver to slow the train down.

"People were just looking at the image of Ravana burning, they did not see the arrival of a train," Sidhu told reporters.

She said that people should not let themselves go to blame the tragedy.

She said that Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh had already ordered an investigation and that after four weeks, everyone would find out who the blame was.

Sidhu said that before going to the platform, four to five announcements had been made since the scene, calling people not to stand on the tracks.

"They were told that there was enough space on the floor of Dhobi Ghat and that they could come but people did not listen to the requests," Sidhu said.

Asked about the permissions granted for the event, Sidhu said he saw two or three authorizations obtained by the organizer.

She said that the Dusshera event had been there for 40 years.

To a question, she said that she was just 15 minutes late to attend the function.

Sidhu said that when she had learned of the incident, she immediately went to the hospital to see the patients.

"I even arranged doctors for the wounded to receive treatment, and as a doctor I treated some of their patients," she said.

The opposition had targeted Friday Navjot Kaur Sidhu, former deputy and wife of Cabinet Minister Navjot Singh Sidhu, claiming that she would have left without disturbing the victims.

The SAD leader and former minister Bikram Singh Majithia had accused Navjot Kaur Sidhu of escaping the scene of the accident.

At least 59 people were killed Friday night after a bunch of Dussehra revelers found themselves on a railroad track watching the fire of Ravana's effigy being smashed by a train near Joda Phatak.

The incident occurred Friday night when at least 300 people were watching the "Ravana dahan". on a lot adjacent to the slopes.