Iran’s Roads Minister Wins Vote of Confidence
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Iranian lawmakers on Sunday gave a vote of confidence to Minister of Roads and Urban Development Abbas Akhoundi, who had been impeached for a tragic train crash that killed dozens of people in November 2016.
Akhoundi took the podium at the parliament on Sunday to respond to the questions of the MPs attending the impeachment session.
At the conclusion of the open session, chaired by Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani, Akhoundi could retain his position by winning 176 out of 255 votes.
74 legislators voted against the minister while 5 abstained.
This was the second time in the past year and a half that Akhoundi survived an impeachment.
The main reason behind his impeachment was what the MPs called weak performance that led to the tragic train crash in November that killed 45 passengers and wounded dozens of others.
A passenger train travelling between capital Tehran and the northeastern holy city of Mashhad was stopping in a mountainous area near Haft-Khan station, on the railroad linking the cities of Semnan and Damghan, when another train hit it from behind, setting a number of cars ablaze.
