New Delhi: Dr Kafeel Khan, the Uttar Pradesh doctor suspended in 2017, has urged the state government to allow him to serve during the Covid-19 second wave, but the Yogi administration has told the paediatrician that in case his complaint is a public grievance then he should approach the government through a portal meant for it.
In a letter dated 17 April to Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, Khan has cited his 15 years of experience in intensive care units (ICUs) to underline that he can be useful during the crisis. He also said the government could put him under suspension again, if it wanted to, after the crisis is over.
“The second wave of the coronavirus is creating havoc. My experience of more than 15 years in the ICU may be helpful in saving some lives,” his tweeted Tuesday along with a copy of his letter. “I humbly request that you grant me the opportunity to serve the country in this Covid-19 epidemic…”
माननीय मुख्यमंत्री @myogiadityanath जी
कोरोना वायरस की दूसरी लहर त्राही-त्राही मचा रही है।मेरा ICU में 15 वर्षो से अधिक का अनुभव शायद कुछ ज़िन्दगियाँ बचाने में काम आ सके।आपसे विनम्र निवेदन है कि इस कोरोना महामारी में देश की सेवा करने का अवसर दें ?
22-8-2017 से निलम्बित हूँ । pic.twitter.com/MHcmtKOEZv
— Dr Kafeel Khan (@drkafeelkhan) April 20, 2021
“Not only UP but the entire country is facing a huge challenge. More than 1,000 doctors have already died in the past one year, and there is already a shortage of doctors,” Khan told ThePrint. “The situation is alarming in UP and the healthcare system has collapsed. In rural areas RT-PCR tests are hardly available.”
Responding to the letter, the chief minister’s office (CMO) has asked the doctor to approach it through its public redressal portal. “If your email is related to any public grievance, then we would like to tell you that for this purpose an official online portal called ‘Jan-Sunni’ has been developed and the web address has been provided too,” reads the CMO response that Khan showed ThePrint. “Kindly use the portal to get your complaints registered and resolved,” he was told.
‘Suspend me after the crisis’
Dr Khan has been under suspension since 22 August 2017, in connection with the death of 60 children at the Baba Raghav Das (BRD) Medical College at Gorakhpur.
He had initially been hailed as a hero, when witnesses credited him with saving children at the medical college amid a crisis of oxygen shortage on the night of 10 August 2017 that killed 60 of them.
On 22 August, however, things took a turn and he was suspended and blamed for the 60 deaths.
Khan told ThePrint that he is currently not working with any hospital and has been serving the people with a group of doctors travelling to the hinterland to assess the ground realities and offering treatment and relief to patients.
He said he has already got a “clean chit” from the Allahabad High Court, adding that others suspended along with him have had their suspensions revoked.
“Why so much bias against me? I still want to serve the people and they can suspend me once again once the pandemic is over,” he said.
(Edited by Arun Prashanth)
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Jihadi will wage new kind of illaj jihad on the masses where treatment would start with thook and end up chara becoming wajibo qatl.
This jihadi wahabi tribal fundamentalist belong to Stone Age and every steps must be taken to send him to its rightful places.
its just religion based allegations by the ruling govts…. at state & central level, its very clear… totally hopeless moments currently in our country… people are dying, innocents are in jail or labelled with false cases….
He is less of a doctor, more of a politician. His skills are to be doubted all the time.
He can serve the people of Chattisgarh or Maharashtra where the situation is more acute.