Scuffle in the Serbian parliament after allegations about the fatal collapse of a station roof

Scuffles and fistfights broke out between the ruling party and opposition politicians in Serbia’s parliament on Monday, weeks after a deadly train station roof collapsed and stoked tensions in the Balkan state.

The opposition wanted to discuss who was responsible for the collapse that killed 15 people at the station in the northern city of Novi Sad on November 1, while government officials, who have a majority in the Serbian legislature, tried to pass a bill about next year’s elections. state budget.

The opposition displayed a banner with a red handprint reading “blood is on your hands,” while the ruling party responded with a banner accusing the opposition of wanting “war while Serbia wants to work.”

Clashes broke out as the two sides tried to grab each other’s banner.

Serbian parliament speaker Ana Brnabic quickly accused the opposition of trying to come to power through force and outside help.

“There is no indication, not an iota of doubt that these are people who are well organized, who are quite well trained, and in my opinion well paid, to create chaos in Serbia and destabilize our country,” she said.

Serbia’s autocratic President Aleksandar Vucic said on Instagram that the opposition’s “daily bullying” and “savage behavior” would not be tolerated.

“I want to reassure citizens and tell them that we will respond to their rudeness, rudeness and arrogance with even more work in the future,” he said.

“Today they tried to prevent retirees from receiving their higher pensions, and public sector workers from their higher salaries. They won’t succeed.”

Opposition leader Dragan Djilas said the speaker had “closed” parliament by “refusing to allow a debate on who is responsible for the train station tragedy.”

“She started this when she refused the request of more than eighty opposition members to put on the agenda a debate about confidence in the government because of the murder and crime in Novi Sad,” Djilas said.

The collapse of the concrete roof raised tensions across the Balkan country, leading to widespread anger towards the government and protests.

The train station, an important junction, was recently renovated as part of a Serbian-Chinese collaboration.

Critics claim that corruption, poor supervision and inadequate construction contributed to the tragedy.

The collapse became a flashpoint for broader dissatisfaction with Serbia’s authoritarian rule, reflecting growing public demands for transparency as the country undertakes major infrastructure projects, mostly with Chinese state-owned companies.