Docs Covering up Japanese Encephalitis Case Figures in Gorakhpur under Pressure by UP Govt: Akhilesh

Lucknow: Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Akhilesh Yadav on Friday attacked the Yogi Adityanath-led BJP government in Uttar Pradesh, alleging it had pressurised doctors to "manage" the number of deaths caused by Japanese Encephalitis (JE) in Gorakhpur. The former chief minister claimed that the "inhumane" work was done by the doctors as per directives from Adityanath.

“Our chief minister is concerned about the deaths of children in Kota, but when will he show concern about more than a thousand kids who died over the last year in Gorakhpur?" said Yadav at a press briefing in Lucknow. "The most inhumane thing done was even after knowing that the kids were suffering from JE, the doctors could not give them the right medication as they were told to keep the figures of such cases in control at any cost.”

At Kota’s JK Lon Hospital, more than 100 infants have been reported dead since the start of December.

“The Yogi government should clarify how over a thousand kids died and why were they not administered the correct medication," asked Yadav. "Soon, I will release a list of the children who have died in Gorakhpur. The media should kindly go and speak to the doctors and question them over wrong medication.”

Yadav also reiterated the SP's stance on the National Population Register (NPR) and said his party members and workers will not fill up any form, adding he is ready to face any punishment.

“I want to know what punishment you will give me and under which law as I am not going to fill the NPR form. They have all the information in the world, which was taken at the time of Aadhaar, now why do they want NPR? It doesn’t make any sense," he said. "Thousands of poor and backward people do not have their papers and birth certificates, what will they do?”

Yadav said SP workers, especially those from the youth wing, will soon embark on a cycle yatra and demand jobs.

“SP workers will also not fill up the NPR form. I would like to urge people to join us in this 'satyagraha' against the government. Engineers, professionals, sons of farmers, ex-armymen and others will participate in the cycle yatra and tell people not to fill the form. The dates will be announced soon,” he added.

Yadav also targeted the UP Police for their action against anti-CAA protesters, claiming that all the deaths were caused by police firing.

“Why else is the post-mortem report of those killed not being shared with their family members?" he asked. "This government can even manipulate the post-mortem report.”

Hours later, Deputy Chief Minister Dinesh Sharma contested his claim. "He (Akhilesh) needs to furnish evidence with the list and not level baseless allegations," Sharma said at a press conference.