Samajwadi Party has decided to field paediatrician Dr Kafeel Khan, who was dismissed by the Uttar Pradesh government in the 2017 BRD Hospital Gorakhpur case, from Deoria-Kushinagar seat for the forthcoming MLC elections.
Kafeel, who was posted with paediatrics department was suspended from service on August 22, 2017, following the deaths of about 60 infants in the hospital due to lack of oxygen, after oxygen suppliers cut off supply due to non-payment of dues by the hospital.
He was later booked and arrested on charges of negligence in his duties resulting in a shortage of medical oxygen, culpable homicide, criminal breach of trust and not performing his duty in 2017. The doctor spent nine months in jail.
Khan had earlier met SP chief Akhilesh Yadav and posted a picture of them together. "Met honourable former chief minister shri @yadavakhilesh sir and presented him a copy of #TheGorakhpurHospitalTragedy," tweeted Khan.
In 2019, Uttar Pradesh government had ordered his suspension for the second time for allegedly interfering in the doctors' duty at Bahraich Hospital and forcibly treating patients there.
Again in 2019, Kafeel was accused of delivering a provocative speech during the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) at Aligarh Muslim University in December and was booked under the stringent National Security Act, 1980 for "disturbing public order in the city and creating an atmosphere of fear and insecurity within the citizens of Aligarh".
The Allahabad High Court later quashed the criminal proceedings against Kafeel.
Meanwhile, Samajwadi Party has announced the names of candidates from Gonda, Deoria, Ballia, Ghazipur, Sitapur for MLC elections.
( With inputs from ANI )
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