Piyush Goyal clarifies no seat reserved in Kashi-Mahakal Express on basis of religion

Railway Minister Piyush Goyal on Tuesday dismissed the reports about a berth being reserved for Lord Shiva in the new Kashi Mahakal Express and said that the train was not reserved on the basis of religion and nor will it be reserved in future.

Piyush Goyal clarified that some Railway employees had kept the picture of Shiva on a berth out of their devotion, during the inaugural run of the train. The minister further said that there were no passengers on the train and its service for the public would begin only on February 20.

Speaking at a news conference in Hyderabad, Piyush said that he also keeps the pictures of Ganesh and Sai Baba with him and offer prayers while travelling. "People while travelling in trains also offer namaz. Nobody has stopped them," he added.

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"Owaisi's tweets misleading"

The minister was replying to a query about the controversy over reservation in the Kashi Mahakal Express. He advised AIMIM president and Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi to check the facts before tweeting. Piyush Goyal alleged that 99 per cent of Owaisi's tweets are misleading and divisive.

The AIMIM chief on Monday had tweeted a picture of the Preamble of the Constitution to the Prime Minister's Office, reacting to the news that a seat in the train was 'being converted into a mini Shiva temple'.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi had flagged off Kashi Mahakal Express on Sunday. A reserved seat -- berth number 64 in coach B5 -- in the Express was reported to have been turned into a mini-temple.

The train connects three Jyotirlingas -- Omkareshwar near Indore, Mahakaleshwar in Ujjain and Kashi Vishwanath in Varanasi.

READ | Seat Allotted To Lord Shiva On Kashi-Mahakal Express To Seek Blessings For Project: IRCTC

IRCTC issues clarification on controversy

The Indian Railways Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC), on Monday, said a seat was reserved for Lord Shiva in the Kashi Mahakal Express during its inaugural run as a "one-time affair" to seek "blessings" for the success of the new project, as some questioned the move.

The train staff had "temporarily put the photos of Shri Mahakaal" on an upper berth during the inaugural run on Sunday to perform pooja, the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) said in a statement.

"The inaugural run was also not open to passengers. There is going to be no such reserved or dedicated berth for this purpose in the commercial run of the train which is starting from February 20, 2020, onwards," the IRCTC had said in the statement.

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