Marandi raises issue of dumping of medicines in Latehar forest

Pioneer News Service
Ranchi

Leader of the Opposition and senior BJP leader Babulal Marandi, has cornered the state government over the incident of government medicines being dumped in the forest between the Manika police station and the Do Muhan river in the Latehar district. Marandi stated that this incident has raised serious questions about Jharkhand’s healthcare system.

These were not just medicines, but the right of poor patients to receive treatment, the public’s tax money, and government accountability scattered on the street. However, it is deeply regrettable that the state’s Health Minister, Irfan Ansari, seems more interested in making reels on social media, giving statements in front of cameras, and intimidating critics with threats of lawsuits and cases, rather than addressing the suffering of the public.

Sharing a video that is going viral on social media, Marandi wrote on his X handle, “Today, the poor patients of Jharkhand are wandering around government hospitals in search of medicines. Somewhere there are no doctors, somewhere there are no beds, somewhere there are no testing facilities, and where something is available, there is a severe shortage of medicines. On the other hand, government medicines worth lakhs of rupees are dumped by the roadside.

What kind of healthcare system is this? When the public asks questions, journalists raise issues, the opposition voices its concerns, or people point out the government’s failures on social media, instead of providing answers, futile attempts are made to silence people by threatening them with lawsuits and legal cases. Is asking questions a crime in a democracy? Can the public not even ask for an accountability of their tax money?”

Taking a dig at the functioning of the Health Minister and the state government, he further added, “Hospitals are not run by reels and cameras. Patients are not treated with dramatic dialogues. The truth cannot be hidden by giving threats. When patients were suffering due to the lack of medicine, how did these medicines end up on the road? Under whose protection did this negligence occur? How many officials have been actioned against so far? Or will the usual game of burying the matter and intimidating those who ask questions continue?”

He has questioned the Chief Minister, asking how long such a mockery of poor people’s lives, the public’s tax money, and the healthcare system will continue.