BENGALURU: Rajya Sabha MP and BJP leader Ashok Gasti, 55, is in a critical condition at the Manipal Hospital’s intensive care unit following multi-organ failure. He was admitted to a private hospital in the state capital on September 2 after testing positive for COVID-19.
“Ashok Gasti, Honorable Member of Parliament from Rajya Sabha, was admitted with severe COVID-19 pneumonia at Manipal Hospital, Old Airport Road. He is critically ill with multi-organ failure on life support system in the intensive care unit,” Dr Manish Rai, Manipal Hospital Director, said in a statement.
Gasti, a native of Lingsugur in Raichur district in North Karnataka, is a lawyer by profession. He has been in the BJP since 1990 and worked in various capacities, including as general secretary of the party's OBC cell.
He was also chairperson of the Backward Class Development Corporation and closely associated with the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). He had worked towards building the party base in Raichur district and hails from the Savita Samaj micro community.