A man in his 40s died on Friday (March 20) after being trapped in a malfunctioning elevator at north Kolkata’s R G Kar Medical College and Hospital. The incident occurred in the hospital’s trauma care unit when the deceased was visiting his four-year-old son for treatment. According to the officials, the accused used the lift that was under maintenance when he got trapped. He was rescued and rushed to an emergency unit, but he died during the treatment. While Suvendhu Adhikari of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has called the incident an act of murder, officials are waiting for the post mortem reports to ascertain the exact cause of death.
In his scathing attack, Suvendhu, the Leader of Opposition (LoP) in the outgoing West Bengal Assembly, targeted Chief Minsiter Mamata Banerjee who is also the in charge of the health department, Health Secretary Narayan Swaroop Nigam and the hospital superintendent responsible for the death.
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“I have documents with me… they intentionally killed (the man) using a lift that was being repaired. A case of murder should be immediately registered in the matter,” he told reporters while campaigning at Mahishadal in Purba Medinipur, as per news agency PTI.
What Happened?
According to officials, the incident occurred when the victim had brought his four-year-old son for treatment at the R G Kar Medical College and Hospital. When he was inside the lift, it stopped functioning suddenly, the man’s family claimed, adding that his wife was at the trauma care unit at the time. They also claimed that there was no operator at the elevator.
The man was bleeding from his nose when he was rescued and taken to the emergency unit, a senior hospital official said. “A post-mortem will ascertain the cause of the death,” the official said.
The hospital’s patient welfare committee chairman, Atin Ghosh, who is also the deputy mayor of Kolkata, admitted that there may have been some lapses, owing to which the “unfortunate incident” took place.
The police will take steps in accordance with the law, Ghosh said.
Meanwhile, Adhikari has termed the hospital authorities “direct killers” and the health minister as well as the health secretary “indirect killers”.
The BJP’s West Bengal unit also targeted the Trinamool Congress dispensation over the incident, saying the RG Kar hospital has again made headlines and alleged the government’s negligence towards the healthcare system.
The party claimed the incident occurred because there was no lift operator and the elevator was not locked despite being under maintenance. “Lakhs and crores are spent by the TMC government on madrassas, but money is not spent on improving the necessary infrastructure in the healthcare system.
“Furthermore, due to corruption in the healthcare system under Health Minister Mamata Banerjee, such unfortunate incidents at hospitals have been fairly common in the last 15 years,” it said in a post on X.
Besides contesting from his stronghold Nandigram, Adhikari is also pitted against Banerjee in Bhabanipur for the state polls.
