Drawing attention to the financial difficulties faced by railway porters, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday said they risked their lives to help people during the stampede at the New Delhi Railway Station last month and yet their voice was not being heard.
The former Congress president, who posted on his YouTube channel a video of his recent interaction with porters at the New Delhi Railway Station, asserted that he would fight for their rights.
Gandhi also urged people to share suggestions on the 'Awaaz Bharat Ki' portal to improve crowd management and strengthen security.
"We will listen to the voice of India!" he said on X.
The increasing number of stampedes at railway stations and other public places is a matter of great concern, Gandhi said, noting that many innocent people lose their lives or get injured in such incidents.
"We need to think together about how to prevent such tragedies," he said.
In his post accompanying the video of his interaction with porters, Gandhi said, "A few days ago, I reached New Delhi Railway Station and met the porter brothers there again. During the interaction, they told me how everyone together made every possible effort to save people's lives on the day of the stampede." "Whether it was trying to remove people from the crowd, ensuring that the injured reached the ambulance and administration, or taking out the bodies of the dead - using their physical abilities, handcarts or spending money from their own pockets, they helped the passengers in every way," the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha said.
Gandhi thanked them for saving many lives and helping in the relief work during the stampede at the station on February 15.
At least 18 people were killed in the incident at the New Delhi Railway Station, which was witnessing a surge of passengers waiting to board trains for Prayagraj.
The Congress leader said, "I am very impressed to see the compassion of these brothers who come to earn daily wages".
"They are still living in financial difficulties - but are full of passion and goodwill. They need help, about which they conveyed their demands. I will definitely make every possible effort to help them," Gandhi said.
In a post in Hindi on X, the Congress leader quoted a porter as saying, "Some days we don't even have money to eat. We either send money home or eat food." "Our porter brothers are forced to live in such difficulties," he said in his post on X.
"During the stampede at New Delhi Railway Station, these people risked their lives to help people, but their voice is not being heard. I will put their demands before the government and fight with all my might for their rights!" Gandhi said.
In the video, the porters tell Gandhi that they are demanding Group D employment.
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