Congress hits out at Adityanath’s ‘picnic spot’ statement

New Delhi, Aug 19 (IANS) The Congress on Saturday criticised Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath's remark that people in Delhi are trying to make Gorakhpur a picnic spot, terming it an insult to the children who died in hospital due to lack of oxygen.

Senior party leader Abhishek Manu Singhvi said that Adityanath, who is still MP from the Gorakhpur constituency, has, through his statement, insulted the memory of the helpless and poor children.

"He (Adityanath) is right that Gorakhpur is not a picnic spot... instead the place has turned into a murderous spot by utter negligence, lack of accountability and total callousness," Singhvi said at a press conference here.

He accused the UP Chief Minister of reducing the debate over medical negligence to such "cheap politicking".

"I will leave for the people of India to judge whether in an anxiety to score political point over (Congress Vice President) Rahul Gandhi (who visited the eastern UP city on Saturday), has he not reduced this whole, serious, terrible and tragic episode to a farce and grossly insulted the memory of those children," said Singhvi.

People are visiting the spot to spread awareness, and to support the families of the deceased, he added.

Adityanath, terming Rahul Gandhi a 'yuvraj' and former Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav 'shehzaada', said their attempts to convert Gorakhpur into a picnic spot would be rebuffed by the people.

More than 70 children, many infants, died last week due to encephalitis and a reported shortage of oxygen supply at the Baba Raghav Das Medical College in Gorakhpur.

Singhvi also targeted BJP for double standards over death of 200 cows who died allegedly of starvation and lack of medicines at a cow shelter run by a BJP leader in Rajpur village of Chhattisgarh's Durg district.

"The new definition of Gau Raksha is the killing of innocent preferably of minority committee walking on the roads," he said asking whether the BJP's Chhattisgarh government will charge the party leader Harish Verma with the harsher offence.