A day after the Yogi Adityanath-led Uttar Pradesh government ordered a high-level bureaucratic probe into the deaths of children at the BRD hospital in Gorakhpur, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav demanded an “independent probe.”
The former U.P. Chief Miniester said he “did not have any faith” in the probe ordered by the BJP government. He, however, did not specify what kind of probe he wanted.
The BJP government has initiated a probe by a high-level committee under the Chief Secretary which will submit its report in a week.
“They launched CBI inquiries for everything to do with us [previous SP government]. At least ensure an independent probe. We want the truth of the incident to come out. We want the government to fix responsibility and accountability so that such an incident is not repeated,” Mr. Yadav said in Gorakhpur, after meeting the family members of children who died in the BRD hospital.
In Gorakhpur rural, Mr. Yadav visited the homes of Brahmdev Yadav and Santosh Gond of Baghagada village in Belipur and Kishun Gupta of village Belwar in Khorabar area.
After meeting the families, Mr. Yadav said they told him that their children did not get the necessary medical facilities and treatment in the BRD hospital.
Compensation sought
The SP chief demanded that ₹20 lakh each be given to the families of the children who died. “The government must tell us why the innocent children died. If there was no oxygen supply, who was responsible for it,” Mr. Yadav said. As Opposition parties continue to corner the Adityanath government over the incident, which happened in his constituency, Mr. Yadav said his party did not want to politicise the issue but only help the poor families who were affected.
Deputy CM Keshav Prasad Maurya, however, said the government is taking all steps to ensure that the culprits are punished and that such incidents are not repeated. ”The probe is on and whoever be the culprit, he will not be spared. The deceased can’t be brought back but our sympathies are with them and we stand with them in this hour of sadness,” Mr. Maurya said, while speaking to a news agency.
Meanwhile, Director General Medical Education K. K. Gupta criticised the functioning of former Principal of the BRD medical college R.K. Mishra, who has been held responsible for the delay in payment to the oxygen company. Soon after he was suspended, Mr. Mishra resigned on moral grounds, saying he had made several requests to the State government to settle the dues but the amount was transferred only on August 7, a week after the company wrote a threatening reminder.
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