Congress decries 'sick' healthcare system in Gujarat
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New Delhi : The Congress on Sunday lashed out at the Gujarat government over the state's "sick healthcare system" and also targeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah on the issue.
"Today, we don't have a healthcare system (in the state); we have a sick system. The inefficiency of the Gujarat government in handling Covid crisis shows that it is undermining, under-confident, and under-achieving," Congress leader Abhishek Manu Singhvi said.
"It is my sad duty to bring to the country's attention the deplorable and indefensible plight of medical and health facilities in Modi's home state and in part of Shah's constituency (4 assembly segments of Ahmadabad fall in Gandhinagar parliamentary constituency)."
The Congress leader said: "We would respectfully ask the PM, HM, GOI, and Gujarat CM -- Are you even aware of what is happening in your own home state? If so, have you ever intervened, chastised or punished the Gujarat government or does the latter have Covid immunity vaccine because they belong to the BJP?"
Singhvi said if such powerful people who control the levers of power were unable to provide justice on their home ground to the poor and needy, what could the rest of India's teeming millions expect from them.
The Congress leader referred to Gujarat High Court observations on the "lack of PPE, shortage of ventilators, ICUs and isolating wards..." and "pathetic" conditions at the Civil Hospital, Ahmedabad.
He said that even the High Court had observed that state Health Minister "does not seem to be aware of what is going on, nor appears to have ever visited the hospital".
The party also questioned why private testing of coronavirus suspected cases, even by authorised private institutions, was stopped by the Gujarat government which ordered that cornan tests can be conducted only at government hospitals.
Singhvi pointed to "proactive" role of the Bengal Governor but the "silence" of the Gujarat Governor on coronavirus situtations in their respective states.