'Outright Murder': Rahul Slams PM Modi, MP CM Over Newborns’ Death After Rat Bites, Commission Seeks Report
Gandhi called it "murder" stemming from government negligence, accusing them of failing to provide basic healthcare. The NCPCR has sought a report on the incident.
Leader of Opposition, Rahul Gandhi, slammed Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav on Thursday over the death of two newborns due to a rat bite in the state's largest government hospital.
The two infants who were in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of Indore's state-run Maharaja Yashwantrao Hospital died after rats bit the fingers of one newborn and the head and shoulder of another child.
One of the newborns died on Tuesday, as the hospital claimed pneumonia was the reason behind the death. The other infant passed away on Wednesday, and the hospital administration said that it was a blood infection and not a rat bite which caused the death.
Rahul Gandhi slammed the BJP government of the state for "negligence" and said they should "hang their heads in shame".
"In Indore, two newborn babies died due to rat bites in Madhya Pradesh's largest government hospital. This is no accident, this is outright murder," said the Congress MP in a post on X.
"This incident is so horrific, inhuman, and insensitive that even hearing about it sends shivers down the spine." A child has been snatched from a mother's lap, simply because the government failed to fulfil its most basic responsibility, he added.
The Congress leader further said, "PM Modi and the chief minister of Madhya Pradesh should hang their heads in shame. Your government has stripped millions of poor people in the country of their right to health -- and now children are being snatched from mothers' laps."
"Modi ji, this voice is rising on behalf of those lakhs of parents who are today victims of governmental negligence. What will be your response?" Gandhi said.
Children's Commission Seeks Report
The National Commission for Protection of Child Rights on Thursday issued a notice to the Indore district collector seeking an action taken report in the case.
The NCPCR directed the collector to probe the incident and submit an action taken report within three days, an official said, reported PTI.
The commission issued a notice based on a complaint filed by an NGO, Jan Swasthya Abhiyan Madhya Pradesh. The convener of the NGO, Amulya Nidhi, alleged that the deaths amounted to a serious violation of child rights, infection-control protocols and hospital safety standards.
The NGO called for an independent investigation into the incident infection-control and pest-control audits in neonatal and paediatric wards across hospitals in the state, the official said.
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