Wayanad landslides: Over 200 killed, Shashi Tharoor bats for ’calamity of severe nature’ tag as Rahul Gandhi visits site

More than 200 people were killed on Tuesday as rain-induced landslides struck Wayanad in Kerala. Leader of Opposition (LoP) Rahul Gandhi visited the disaster-affected areas in Chooralmala with Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi on Thursday afternoon. 

Meanwhile, Congress MP from Thiruvananthapuram, Shashi Tharoor, urged Home Minister Amit Shah to tag the incident as a 'calamity of severe nature' under MPLADS guidelines. 

“According to our information, more than 200 deaths have taken place. Bodies are being recovered, and over 200 people are injured. On the first day, 150 people were rescued, and we are still conducting the search and rescue operation. As of now, there are sufficient teams of the Indian Army, NDRF, Fire Services, IAF, ICG, and others on the spot, and a review meeting was held by the Kerala CM and other officials,” DIG Shahidi told ANI.

Rescue operations led by the Indian Army continued at three locations—Attamala, Mundakkai, and Chooralmala—on Thursday afternoon. 

Former Wayanad MP Rahul Gandhi and Congress party's likely candidate for the upcoming bypolls, Priyanka Gandhi, landed at Kannur airport at 9.30 am before heading to Wayanad by road. Visuals shared online showed the two Congress politicians making their way through the waterlogged terrain in Chooralmala alongside Congress general secretary (organisation) KC Venugopal.

“We are focusing on the hope of rescuing some people still because the truth is 200 lives have been lost, but still another 200 people are missing. Two villages have disappeared from the map in this severe crisis. The Union Home Minister said that the early warning was issued, but the CM said that the warning was not sufficiently serious; it was a green or orange alert and not a red alert. All of these things can be disputed later. Eventually, preventive measures are required. I don't want to get into a political debate,” Shashi Tharoor told reporters.

(With inputs from agencies)