Hundreds died due to oxygen shortage: BJP MLA

July 27, 2021 20:31

A Bharatiya Janata Party MLA in Hardoi claimed that 'hundreds of people died' due to lack of oxygen during the second Covid wave, days after his party's Union government told Parliament that states did not report such deaths.

BJP's Gopamau MLA Shyam Prakash wrote this on the Facebook wall of journalist Anand Mishra, who had posted newspaper cuttings of letters of some MLAs, in which the issue was raised.

"You have told the truth, I agree with you, hundreds of people died in agony due to lack of oxygen. No one can see the pain of lakhs of families, including that of MLA Rajkumar Agarwal," the MLA said.

Agarwal, a BJP MLA from Sandila, had lost his son during the second coronavirus wave and had alleged negligence on the part of the hospital.

Shyam Prakash, however, on Monday told reporters that he had not written about Uttar Pradesh when he made the comment on the Facebook wall of the scribe.

The Union government had last week told the Rajya Sabha that no deaths due to lack of oxygen were reported by states and UTs during the second COVID-19 wave.

'All states and UTs report cases and deaths to the Union Health Ministry on a regular basis. However, no deaths due to lack of oxygen have been specifically reported by states and UTs,' Minister of State for Health Bharati Praveen Pawar had told Parliament in a written reply to a question.

Earlier too, several BJP leaders had complained of mismanagement during the second coronavirus wave, with even former Union minister Santosh Gangwar writing to CM Yogi Adityanath about the situation in his Bareilly constituency.

He said officials don't take calls and government health centres send back patients for 'referrals' from the district hospital.

He had also complained about the shortage of empty oxygen cylinders and high prices of medical equipment in Bareilly. -- PTI

« Back to LIVE

TOP STORIES

LIVE! Why is ECI afraid?: Cong after election rule tweak

Govt tweaks poll rule to curb public inspection of...

Based on the recommendation of the Election Commission (EC), the Union law ministry on Friday amended Rule 93(2)(a) of the Conduct of Election Rules, 1961, to restrict the type of "papers" or documents open to public inspection.

'Pushpa 2' stampede: CM lambast 'inhuman' Allu Arjun

Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy has criticized Telugu actor Allu Arjun for attending the screening of 'Pushpa-2' despite police permission being denied. Reddy alleges that the actor continued to be present at the cinema hall...

Amid Ambedkar row, AAP declares scholarship for Dalits

In the run-up to the assembly elections in Delhi, AAP supremo Arvind Kejriwal announced an Ambedkar scholarship for free foreign education of the city's Dalit students. The scholarship is a response to the BJP's "insult" of Ambedkar,...

TN temple refuses to return iPhone dropped in 'hundi'

As per the practises and tradition at the temples, any offerings made into the hundial directly goes into the account of the deity of that temple. Rules do not permit the administration to return the offerings back to the devotees, Babu...