Aaditya Thackeray Slams Rail Minister Over Mumbai Local Train Tragedy That Killed 4

Mumbai, June 10: In the aftermath of a tragic accident on Monday morning at Thane’s Mumbra railway station, which claimed four lives and left several others injured, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray has come down heavily on Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, accusing him of neglecting core railway issues.

The mishap occurred when several passengers travelling towards CSMT fell from a crowded local train near Mumbra station. The incident, reportedly caused by excessive overcrowding, has once again sparked debate over commuter safety and the urgent need for infrastructure upgrades in the Mumbai Suburban Railway network.

Addressing the media in Mumbai, Thackeray said, “This incident is unfortunate but not new — such tragedies have happened in the past. We don’t know whether he is the Rail Minister or ‘Reel Minister’. He seems more concerned with appearances than with addressing real issues of railway safety.”

According to railway officials, the injured passengers were rushed to nearby hospitals, and an investigation has been launched into the accident. Local train services were briefly impacted following the mishap.

In response to the tragedy, the Indian Railways has announced corrective measures, including:

• Automatic door-closing systems to be installed on all new rakes currently under manufacture for the Mumbai Suburban network

• Retrofitting existing rakes in service with door-closure mechanisms to prevent similar incidents in the future

The incident has reignited concerns over the safety of the overburdened suburban network, often described as the lifeline of Mumbai, which serves over 8 million commuters daily. Experts and commuter associations have long demanded solutions to issues like overcrowding, lack of safety measures, and inadequate train frequency during peak hours.

While official data on such accidents is often sparse, similar incidents of passengers falling from moving trains due to overcrowding have been recorded multiple times over the years, with fatalities often attributed to systemic neglect and infrastructure limitations.

Thackeray urged the Centre to prioritize long-standing demands for better capacity management, safety infrastructure, and timely completion of expansion projects aimed at easing pressure on Mumbai’s suburban trains.