Samajwadi Party MP Rajeev Kumar Rai.
Credit: PTI Photo
A day after criticising Bengaluru traffic and its police, Samajwadi Party MP Rajeev Rai said that sharp jibe on Monday was intended towards the city's traffic and not the Congress government.
Rai said such a comment in a BJP state would have attracted an FIR, adding that Bengaluru is one of the safest cities where people, including women move freely even at night.
"My earlier remarks were about Bengaluru’s traffic, not the govt’s intent. To their credit, the Congress govt and police officials acknowledged the issue and assured action. In many BJP-ruled states, raising such concerns would’ve earned me an FIR. Despite traffic woes, Bengaluru remains one of India’s safest cities, where people, especially women, can move freely even late at night. That’s far better than the situation in several BJP-governed states. Constructive criticism should lead to improvement, not intimidation," Rai said in a statement on social media platform X.
On Monday, Rai, had taken to X to lambast the city's traffic police, claiming he was stuck in "worst" traffic management for over an hour and was unable to reach any officer for assistance.
The incident occurred on the heavily congested Rajkumar Samadhi Road and saw the MP expressing grave concern about missing a flight, as he was due to attend the Parliament Winter Session which began on Monday.
Rai also attached a screenshot of his mobile call log as evidence, showing multiple consecutive calls to four different Bengaluru traffic helplines and patrol numbers as none were picked up.
The politician, who was reportedly rushing to the airport, added that such inefficiency was enough to "spoil the name and charm of this beautiful city."
He further charged that the city's perennial gridlock has "earned the reputation of most notorious traffic," tagging both the Bengaluru City Police and the Joint Commissioner of Traffic Police in his viral post.
In response, Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar, who oversees Bengaluru’s development, had brushed off the criticism with humour.
“Let me meet him in Delhi… I will meet him in Delhi and I will show him the traffic in Delhi,” he told reporters.