Toddler tries to wake up dead mother, video goes viral

Muzaffarpur, May 27

A toddler’s vain attempt to wake up his dead mother from eternal sleep on a railway platform in Bihar’s Muzaffarpur on Wednesday presented the most poignant picture of the massive migrant tragedy unfolding across several states.

A video tweeted by Sanjay Yadav, an aide to RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav, shows the child walking unsteadily up to his mother’s body, tugging at the blanket placed over her, and when failing to wake her up, covering his own head with it. As the mother still lay still, he wobbles away from her, announcements continuing in the background about the arrival and departure of trains that would bring in tens of thousands of people in a rush to get away from hunger and hardship they face in large cities that could sustain them no more.

“This child doesn’t know that the bedsheet with which he is playing is the shroud of his mother who has gone into eternal sleep. This mother died of hunger and thirst after being on a train for four days. Who is responsible for these deaths on trains? Shouldn’t the opposition ask uncomfortable questions?” tweeted Yadav. — PTI

Death due to pre-existing ailment: Railways

New Delhi: The Railways on Wednesday defended its handling of migrant specials after a heart-rending video surfaced online showing a toddler attempting to wake up his dead mother. While the Railways claimed the woman died of a pre-existing heart condition, AAP’s Sanjay Singh said the claim is a “lie”. PTI