Delhi reels under the unexpected or rather ‘much’ expected bout of chikungunya, dengue and other mosquito vector borne diseases. Till now, chikungunya which is a “non-fatal” disease has claimed three lives on Monday and at least 10 people have died of dengue and malaria.
As Delhi hospitals overflow with patients, the health minister Satyendar Jain campaigns in Goa for the party’s future in assembly elections. At such a crucial time, chief minister Arvind Kejriwal, also shrugged off his responsibilities and deflected the criticism over Jain’s absence by pointing out that Delhi’s Lieutenant Governor Najeeb Jung is not in the capital either. The chief minister, who incidentally is in Bangalore for a throat surgery, tweeted:
CM n min left wid no power now, even to buy a pen. LG n PM enjoy all powers wrt Del. LG abroad.Question them for Del https://t.co/t8ygcZmo1P
— Arvind Kejriwal (@ArvindKejriwal) September 13, 2016
Kejriwal’s second in command and deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia, is also not in town. He is in Finland for an education programme. The only minister available in the city is Kapil Mishra and when contacted, he too gave the rhetoric reply of “MCD being inactive” and asked “where the mayor has disappeared”.
“The MCD is responsible for fogging to keep mosquitoes away,” said Mishra, and also said that Sayender Jain will be back in the capital today and that he has been getting constant updates on the Delhi health situation.
While AAP’s ministers defend each other and justify their absence from Delhi for election-related tours, over a 1,000 chikungunya cases, 1,100 dengue cases and 21 cases of malaria have been reported so far.
