UP govt violated central order by not allowing Cong buses: Raj transport minister

Rajasthan Transport Minister Pratap Singh Khachariyawas said on Wednesday that the Uttar Pradesh government has disobeyed a Central order by not allowing the buses sent by the Congress to transport migrants in the BJP-ruled state.

Khachariyawas said that the Center had issued an order on March 30 that all permits, fitness certificates, driving licenses of vehicles will be considered valid till June 30 even if they have expired as the lockdown remained in place.

The Uttar Pradesh government has disregarded the order by not allowing the buses sent by the Congress, he said, adding the Centre should take action against the UP government and a case should be filed against them.

"The entire nation has seen the promise of the UP Chief Minister, illegal acts and contempt of the Centre's order," Khachariyawas told reporters here.

He said that Uttar Pradesh government returned 1,000 buses sent by Congress workers instead of using them to transport migrant by saying that "they do not have fitness, permit or license".

"This is an illegal act that cannot be forgiven,"Khachariyawas said.

The Congress and the Uttar Pradesh government were at loggerhead over the arrangement of buses to take migrant labourers to their homes in Uttar Pradesh. The Congress had offered 1,000 buses to send migrant labourers walking on foot to their homes in Uttar Pradesh.

The Congress leader said that Rajasthan is the only state in the country that has run special buses for labourers to take migrants to their homes.