First meeting of Shiv Sena national executive under Shinde held, he remains 'chief leader'
Mumbai, Feb 21: Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde will remain the "chief leader" of the Shiv Sena, it was decided at its first national executive meeting held here on Tuesday evening.
The participants at the meeting, which came after the Election Commission last week recognized the Shinde faction as the real Shiv Sena, gave all powers to take decisions about the party to Shinde.
State industries minister Uday Samant and party leader Ramdas Kadam gave information about the resolutions passed in the meeting.
The rival factions led by Shinde and former CM Uddhav Thackeray are locked in legal battles over the control of the Shiv Sena.
"The meeting was chaired by chief leader of the Shiv Sena, chief minister Eknath Shinde," Samant said.
It resolved to form a disciplinary committee, he added.
Other resolutions included the demand of posthumous Bharat Ratna for freedom fighter and Hindutva ideologue Vinayak Damodar Savarkar.
Another resolution demanded inclusion of Sambhaji Maharaj, Veermata Jijabai and Ahilyabai Holkar in the list of "national personalities."
Samant did not specify what role Uddhav Thackeray will have in this new Shiv Sena.
The disciplinary committee would be headed by state ports development minister Dada Bhuse; excise minister Shambhuraj Desai and Sanjay More will be its other members.
"The disciplinary committee will ensure smooth functioning of the party and will take action against party leaders who act against the party lines," Samant said, without naming former party president Uddhav Thackeray and 16 MLAs who are loyal to him.
Shinde's revolt against Thackeray's leadership last June brought down the Thackeray-led Sena-Congress-NCP government in Maharashtra.
Thackeray camp has filed a petition in the Supreme Court challenging the validity of Shinde group's defection and the way the Shinde-led government was formed with the support of the Bharatiya Janata Party.
Ramdas Kadam, a former minister, said, "All the MLAs, MPs and party leaders unanimously gave the power to take all future decisions about the Shiv Sena to Eknath Shinde.
"Shinde asked all the MLAs and party leaders to focus more on carrying on good work and spend less time in responding to criticism," he added.
Asked how the new national executive was different from the earlier one headed by Uddhav Thackeray, Kadam said the earlier national executive body was "autocratic and repressive."
Thackeray tried to end the political careers of veteran Shiv Sena leaders, he alleged.
"Not only me, but Uddhav Thackeray also tried to destroy the career of my son and MLA Yogesh Kadam through Anil Parab," Kadam said.
"(Rajya Sabha member) Sanjay Raut had made an objectionable remark against late (Sena leader and Shinde's mentor) Anand Dighe. We have passed a resolution to condemn his remarks. There will be another news about him in the coming days," Kadam said, hinting that Raut, who is loyal to Thackeray, could face action.
Shinde told those present at the meeting that he and his associates rescued the ideology of the Sena founder Bal Thackeray and the party's symbol which had been surrendered to the NCP and Congress, Kadam said.
Siddhesh Ramdas Kadam has been appointed as secretary of the Shiv Sena by Shinde.
The executive body also passed a resolution demanding that the Churchgate train station in Mumbai be named for former RBI governor and finance minister C D Deshmukh.
Meanwhile, reacting to the resolution demanding Bharat Ratna for Savarkar, a spokesperson of the Thackeray group said there was nothing new in it as the Maharashtra government had made this demand in 2018 and 2019.
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B'luru: "Least priority, shifted late," says brother of patient who died in Ramaiah hospital fire
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Bengaluru: Hours after a fire broke out at the Critical Care Unit (CCU) of the MS Ramaiah Memorial Hospital on New BEL Road on Thursday, a 34-year-old patient, Sujay Sujathan Panicker, tragically passed away. His family has accused the hospital authorities of negligence, which they claim led to his death.
The fire at Ramaiah Memorial Hospital is believed to have been caused by a short circuit. Initial reports suggested that there were no casualties in the incident.
Sujay, originally from Kollam in Kerala, had been residing in Bengaluru with his family since 2004. He was undergoing treatment for pneumonia, Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS), and H1N1 since September 1 at the hospital.
Sujay's wife and father released a video accusing the hospital of negligence. In the video, his wife, Rohini Jayan, alleged that the hospital authorities took no action against those responsible for the fire.
Sujay’s brother, Sujin Sujathan Panicker, speaking to Vartha Bharathi, detailed the family’s ordeal. He said that despite his sister-in-law requesting assistance during the chaos, the hospital staff pushed her away, assuring her that all patients had been safely evacuated to the Medical Intensive Care Unit (MICU). However, Sujin claims that his sister-in-law did not see Sujay being shifted.
He further stated, “Sometime later, when a doctor arrived, she (Rohini) inquired about Sujay. It was only after the doctor questioned the staff that they rushed to evacuate him.”
Sujin added that by the time his brother was evacuated, 50 minutes had already passed since the fire broke out. "He was still inside, while all the other patients were taken out first. He was admitted to the hospital with a respiratory illness, yet he was given the least priority during the chaos. He was the last one to be evacuated."
He also claimed that Rohini had already noticed that Sujay’s condition had deteriorated and believed he had passed away, though the hospital authorities did not officially declare his death.
Sujin further stated that the hospital authorities called him and his father to the board room at the 8th floor of the hospital, where senior executives and doctors who had treated Sujay were present “During the interaction they (hospital authorities) claimed that Sujay was still alive and that his condition had worsened amid the smoke and that his chances of survival were less, which was not true.”
"Despite staff being present to evacuate my brother, they remained negligent. The fire broke out at 1:00 p.m., so why did it take 50 minutes to get him out? He was in a corner bed in the CCU, and it seemed they either overlooked the room or ignored it. Even after repeated requests, it took them 50 minutes to evacuate him," Sujin added.
Sujin also expressed concerns that the hospital authorities might attempt to influence the investigation. "They can influence anyone—any hospital, any report."
At the time of the interview, Sujin stated that neither anyone from the government nor from the health department had contacted the family.
A complaint has been filed in connection with the incident at the Sadashivanagar police station. "The statements of the family members have been recorded, and an investigation into the matter is underway. An FIR has been lodged under Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita (BNS) Section 106 (causing death due to negligence)," said Sadashivanagar police station Sub-Inspector.
Meanwhile, officials from Ramaiah Memorial Hospital were unavailable for comment.
