BJP's Amethi unit wants Sanjay Gandhi hospital to be handed over to Maneka, Varun

Amethi, Oct 5 (IANS) The BJP's Amethi district unit has demanded that the management of the Sanjay Gandhi Memorial Trust be handed over to Maneka Gandhi and her son Varun Gandhi, BJP MPs from Sultanpur and Pilibhit, respectively.

In a memorandum addressed to the Uttar Pradesh Governor Anandiben Patel, the BJP has also demanded that free treatment be provided at the hospital.

"The Sanjay Gandhi Hospital is constructed on the land given on lease by the state government. The conditions of the lease were not adhered to and the hospital continued to be run in a disorganised manner. Hence, the government should hand over the management of Sanjay Gandhi Memorial Trust to BJP leader Maneka Gandhi, widow of Sanjay Gandhi, and her son and BJP MP from Pilibhit Varun Gandhi," the memorandum said.

"Else, the government should take over the hospital and hand over its management to Lucknow-based Sanjay Gandhi Postgraduate Institute of Medical Sciences (SGPGI)," it added.

The memorandum was handed over to the District Magistrate of Amethi by BJP's district unit Chief Ram Prasad Mishra.

On September 27, more than 400 employees of the hospital sat on a 'dharna' against the suspension of its licence.

A political controversy erupted over the issue after local Congress leaders also staged a protest outside the Chief Minister's Office.

Union Minister and BJP MP from Amethi, Smriti Irani, had attacked the Congress over the suspension of hospital's licence, saying instead of supporting the deceased woman's family, the party was "crying over loss of its profits".

The woman patient, Divya, who was admitted to the Sanjay Gandhi Hospital on September 14, went into a coma during a surgery. Her family members alleged that she was kept at the hospital for more than 30 hours before being referred to Lucknow where she died on September 16.

The next day, an FIR of causing death by negligence was registered against four employees of the hospital, including its chief executive officer.