JDU's damage control, sacks leader for 'no support to BJP in Manipur' letter
New Delhi/ Imphal, Jan 22 (PTI): The JD(U) on Wednesday sacked its Manipur unit president, Ksh. Biren Singh, in an effort to quell growing speculation about its ties with the BJP.
Party's national spokesperson Rajiv Ranjan said Singh's removal was due to indiscipline and asserted that the party would continue to support the BJP-led government in the northeastern state.
Ranjan affirmed that the JD(U) remains committed to supporting the BJP-led NDA, not just in Manipur but across the country.
"Our party has worked diligently to strengthen the NDA and will continue to do so," he added.
Ranjan's remark came shorty after Ksh Biren Singh claimed that the party had withdrawn support to the BJP-led Biren Singh government and informed its decision to governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla.
The state unit chief had also claimed that the lone JDU MLA in the state, Md Abdul Nasir, will sit in the opposition benches.
In a letter to governor Bhalla, Ksh Biren Singh said, "After JD (U) became part of India Bloc, support to the BJP led government was withdrawn by JD(U)... as such, seating arrangement of the lone MLA of JD(U) in Manipur Md Abdul Nasir is made in the opposition bench in the last session of the Assembly by the Speaker."
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Insensitive of Pune hospital to deny admission to woman, says Fadnavis; forms inquiry panel
Mumbai (PTI): Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has ordered the formation of a committee to inquire into the death of a pregnant woman after she was allegedly refused admission by Pune's leading Deenanath Mangeshkar Hospital over non-payment of a deposit of Rs 10 lakh.
The controversy escalated on Friday with local political activists staging a protest outside the hospital and the hospital claiming that the woman's relatives were making misleading allegations.
A day earlier, BJP MLC Amit Gorkhe claimed in a video message that Tanisha Bhise, the wife of his personal assistant, was refused admission by the hospital. She was taken to another hospital where she died after delivering twins, he said.
A statement from the Chief Minister's Office said on Friday that he had taken serious note of the incident. "He has ordered the formation of an inquiry committee under the chairmanship of the Joint Commissioner of Charity, Pune," it said.
It said that the deputy secretary or under-secretary of the Law and Justice department would be the member secretary of the committee.
Further, instructions have been issued to the principal secretary, the Law and Justice department and the charity commissioner to ensure that the Charity Patient Scheme prepared as per the directions of the High Court is effectively implemented by all charity hospitals, the CMO said.
"All charitable hospitals should seek approval from the 'Charity Hospital Help Desk' through the online system to make reserved beds available to patients from the poor and vulnerable groups," it said.
The government has approved 186 posts of charitable health workers in charitable hospitals, and they should be filled immediately, the CMO statement said.
Talking to reporters here, Fadnavis said it was "insensitive" on the part of the hospital to deny admission to a pregnant woman.
He conceded that there was a lot of anger among the people over the incident.
"Medical ethics are needed. The Chief Minister's medical cell also intervened, but the hospital did not budge," Fadnavis said.
An internal inquiry report of the Mangeshkar Hospital claimed that the allegations of denial of admission for non-payment of Rs 10 lakh were "misleading" and made "out of frustration" by her family.
The woman's pregnancy was in the high-risk category, and her two underweight fetuses of seven months, coupled with a history of an old ailment, required Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) treatment for at least two months, it said.
The treatment required Rs 10 lakh to Rs 20 lakh and the family was advised that in case of lack of funds, they could admit the patient to the government-run Sassoon General Hospital for a complicated surgery, it added.
BJP MLC Chitra Wagh, meanwhile, came under criticism for a social media post praising the party's women's wing members who targeted and vandalised a private clinic in Pune's Kothrud area belonging to Dr Shusrut Ghaisas, who works at the hospital.
Dr Nilima Ghaisas, his mother, said her son did not practice there.
Activist Vishwambhar Choudhari criticised Wagh's remarks and claimed that the BJP-led state government recently allotted land to the hospital for Rs 1 per year rent.
The deceased woman's husband was the personal assistant of a BJP Member of the Legislative Council, yet he could not do anything, Chaudhari said.
