PANJIM: Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Thursday said that the repeated shutdowns of the Atal Setu have exposed the claims of development and corrupt politics of the BJP government. Reacting to the most recent shutdown of one of the bridge entries for 100 days, State convenor Rahul Mhambre draws parallel between the bridge’s disrepair and administration of BJP Govt.
“BJP came into power nine years ago on the plank of anti-corruption, but has created a whole new level of corruption itself. The bridges, roads etc which are being built on borrowed money are crumbling even before proper completion. This low-quality, high-cost infrastructure is a concrete monument to the party’s corruption. The BJP is only focused on feeding the greed of its MLAs and that of the Congress MLAs that were purchased. No one is paying any attention to actual governance or solving issues being faced by the people”, Mhambre charged.
Mhambre recollected that the Atal Setu was inaugurated in a hurry for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, despite portions of the bridge were not fully completed.
“The BJP’s pet project has already cost more than double the original estimate of 385 crore, and the bridge is still incomplete; Even the completed portions are having constant defects, incurring further costs as well as endangering the lives of Goans. The sudden hurry to close the bridge arm is only to make temporary cosmetic repairs so that any major mishap is avoided before the 2022 election”, Mhambre claimed.
Mhambre trashed Chief Minister Pramod Sawant’s assurance to rope in IIT Chennai to study the defects as eyewash.
“Crores of public money has already been spent on consultancy, studies, reports, tests, etc. Most of which was done by BJP’s pet vendors who functioned as the conduits of corruption. Sawant can spend as much more money as he wants, but the fact remains that the bridge was built on foundation of corruption”, Mhambre added.
