LUCKNOW: Dr Kafeel Khan, suspended doctor of BRD Medical College of Gorakhpur, who had to reach Kozhikode on Friday to serve NIPAH hit patients, has been asked by the Kerala government to defer his plans to visit the state for now.
Saddened by the decision of Kerala government, Dr Kafeel Khan, who had volunteered to serve NIPAH affected people in the state, wondered what prompted the southern state authorities to take such a decision. He, however, cancelled his trip saying that he would go only if required and called by the Kerala state
authorities.
According to reports, the Kerala government’s U-turn came after the BJP and other opposition parties criticised the move to invite the doctor, who was facing charges in another state. As per highly placed sources, the principal of the BRD Medical College was also against Dr Khan’s proposed trip to Kerala, saying he needed the permission of the state health department.
As per the sources, clearing the air over the issue, Kerala state authorities claimed that the experts of infectious diseases on the ground and those associated with Indian Medical Association (IMA) believed that Dr Khan, a paediatrician, would not be of much help as the current priority was to make the state virus-free.
They allegedly believed that calling the doctor, who is out on bail in last year’s kids’ death row in Gorakhpur, would unnecessarily give a political colour to the matter.
The sources further said that the concern of medical fraternity was shared with the Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan who was convinced that state doctors in association with the central team were able to tackle the situation efficiently.
Notably, Dr Khan is out on bail after spending seven months in jail in connection with the deaths of over two dozen children in a span of 24 hours due to alleged disruption of oxygen supply at BRD Medical College, Gorakhpur in August last year. The doctor, currently on suspension, was then the nodal officer of National Health Mission and in charge encephalitis ward.
Dr Khan had offered his services in Kerala by reaching out to the state CM through an FB post. He was immediately contacted by the Kerala CM office and was welcomed to visit the state. Dr Khan’s main contention was that since the symptoms of the virus hit patients were almost similar to those of encephalitis, so the line of clinical treatment would also be almost same and that he would be of some help in southern state.