BELAGAVI: Kagwad MLA who mysteriously disappeared from a hotel where Congress legislators were holed up in Bengaluru on Wednesday night has surfaced in Mumbai on Thursday. It has come to light that the disgruntled Congress MLA Shrimant Patil had already planned to skip the crucial assembly session's proceedings on Thursday. However, on reaching Mumbai, the MLA is said to have developed chest pain and rushed to Sanjeevani Hospital in Dadar where he underwent an ECG test.
Speaking to TNIE, Dr Dinesh Shah of Sanjeevani Hospital, Mumbai who attended to Shrimant Patil at 10.30 am today, said, "Following complaints of chest pain by Patil, he was made to undergo an ECG test. We found some minor changes in ECG test and that's all. He has been referred to St George Hospital, Mumbai for further treatment.''
The MLA's BP also was high when he was brought to the hospital. However, his condition is stated to be out of danger, hospital sources said.
A sugar baron from Belagavi district, Shrimant Patil had been in touch with a group of Congress rebel MLAs who are staying in a Mumbai hotel for the past few days, according to sources. He was reluctant to join the group for the past but finally decided to stay away from the crucial session of the state assembly on Thursday. His phone was switched off on Thursday and the MLA was not available for comments.
His political mentor, Ramesh Jarkiholi had kept up pressure on Patil since December last year urging him to join the group of party rebels. According to sources, Patil was willing to join Jarkiholi but was not ready to take a hasty step that could affect his political prospects in Kagwad constituency. Several BJP leaders from Maharashtra also were in touch with Patil for the last few weeks as he runs three sugar factories in Maharashtra state. Patil has assured them of helping the BJP to form a government in the state, sources added.
Many of his supporters back in Belagavi question the need of Patil to rush to Mumbai for treatment for a minor chest pain when some of the best cardiologists are available in Bengaluru. In December last year when Ramesh Jarkiholi stated in Gokak about his decision to resign, he had hinted that Patil was one among some of the MLAs from Belagavi district who are keen to quit.