Indore: Congress leader Umang Singhar on Friday slammed the ruling BJP in Madhya Pradesh following the judicial commission's report on the deaths caused due to contaminated water in Indore, saying the drinking water situation in this major city was like that of small African villages.
The Leader of Opposition in the state assembly also demanded filing of an FIR against those responsible for the deaths of several citizens due to contaminated drinking water supply in the Bhagirathpura area of the city, and also sought the resignation of Mayor Pushyamitra Bhargava.
Talking to reporters in Indore, Singhar said, "A major investigation report was prepared on the drinking water tragedy, but the situation remains akin to the proverbial 'mountain dug only to find a mouse' because even after the report was released, the state government has not taken any action against those responsible."
He said Chief Minister Mohan Yadav should immediately take necessary action and an FIR should be filed against those responsible.
Singhar claimed that even as months have passed since the drinking water crisis hit Indore, the citizens and patients in government hospitals are forced to drink contaminated water.
The state government has failed to provide clean drinking water to people despite numerous assurances made in the assembly, according to him.
"The Indore Municipal Corporation has an annual budget of Rs 8,500 crore. Despite this, the drinking water situation in a large city like Indore is like that of small villages in Africa," he said.
Singhar claimed that the ruling BJP in the state never wanted the investigation report of the judicial commission formed into the Bhagirathpura contaminated drinking water case to be made public.
He alleged that the state government resorted to non-cooperation and manipulation before the one-member commission headed by former High Court judge Sushil Kumar Gupta to protect Cabinet Minister and local MLA Kailash Vijayvargiya, Mayor Pushyamitra Bhargava, and area councillor Kamal Baghela.
Singhar said that the commission was not provided with documents related to the drinking water and sewerage pipelines even when requested.
Citing the report, he said that a pipeline project in Bhagirathpura was delayed by a total of 859 days, from the tender call to completion, of which the delay of 66 days was caused simply because Mayor Bhargava had not signed the file.
Demanding the mayor's resignation, Singhar said, "Bhargava should explain to the public why this file was held up for 66 days. Was the file held up to secure a commission from the contractor firm that had been awarded the contract to lay the pipeline?"
The judicial commission's more than 600-page report states that sewage and drinking water pipelines in Bhagirathpura were laid side by side, violating regulations and standards, resulting in contamination of sewage water with drinking water.
According to the report, bacteria such as E. coli and total coliform were found in the contaminated drinking water, and drinking this water led to illnesses such as gastroenteritis, vomiting, diarrhoea, and dehydration.
Cases of people falling ill due to contaminated drinking water supply in Bhagirathpura were reported in December 2025. Locals and the Congress party have claimed that 36 people died in the outbreak.
The judicial commission report stated that the health department had received information about 35 deaths in Bhagirathpura by February 12, and 22 of these deaths were considered "possibly related" to the contaminated drinking water supply incident.