File Photo: Congress leader Abhishek Manu Singhvi
Congress today flayed Centre and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal over the suicide of a couple after their seven-year-old son died of dengue, saying the two were "squabbling like children" when a child died due to lack of treatment in the national capital.
"Is this the treatment given to aam aadmi (common man) jointly by Mr Kejriwal and Delhi Lieutenant Governor (Najeeb Jung), who are fighting like children when a child dies fighting disease in absence of hospital beds in the Delhi," party spokesperson Abhishek Singhvi said.
The couple, Laxmichandra and Babita Rout-- natives of Odisha -- committed suicide by jumping from a four-storeyed building in south Delhi's Lado Sarai on Wednesday morning, a day after their only son Avinash died of suspected dengue.
Avinash's parents had approached five private hospitals in Delhi on September 7 before being given admission at 11 PM by Batra hospital where the toddler died the next day.
The five hospitals have been issued show cause notices to explain within a month why their registration should not be cancelled for allegedly refusing to admit the boy, Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain said.
Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said strict action will be taken against the hospitals which refused admission to the boy. "It is completely unacceptable that some hospitals didn't accept a patient and he died. Strict action would be taken against them," he tweeted.
Rejecting to Kejriwal's remarks, Mr Singhvi said the Chief Minister should understand that only making statements won't work.
"Hospitals are directly under your supervision. In the national capital, a healthy child dies one day due to a disease and parents have to commit suicide. You are spending Rs 700 crore on advertisements. You could have given at least Rs 70 crore of this to Delhi hospitals to save such lives.