By Express News Service
NEW DELHI: A day after the Gujarat chief minister Vijay Rupani charged that a suspended ISIS operative used to work at a hospital where Congress strategist Ahmed Patel has been a trustee, the BJP sought to scale up the attack, while asking the Opposition party to come clean on the issue.
“This is a serious issue, as a terrorist was arrested from a hospital which is being run by Patel... It has now been revealed that though Patel had resigned as a trustee of that hospital in 2014, but he is still at the helm of the hospital’s affairs,” the Gujarat CM alleged.
Stating that a failure to give an explanation on the part of the Congress would mean the hand of the party is with terrorists, Union minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi quoted official records to allege that the arrested ISIS operative had indeed been working at the hospital.
“Patel had deep relations since 1979 with hospitals where the arrested ISIS operative had been working earlier,” Naqvi alleged, while asking the Congress chief Sonia Gandhi and his deputy Rahul Gandhi to come clean on the issue.
With Gujarat state polls approaching, the BJP is apparently seeking to put the Congress in a spot over the allegations even while the social media head of the party Amit Malviya tweeted “Congress with Azaadi” following remarks of former home minister P Chidambaram on the issue of separatism in Jammu and Kashmir.
Congress communications department chief Randeep Surjewala defended Patel saying neither he nor any of his family members were a trustee of the Bharuch Hospital where the alleged terrorist was working.
“A frustrated BJP facing imminent defeat in Gujarat is resorting to levelling reckless and baseless allegations against Ahmed Patel,” he said adding that the Sardar Vallabhai Patel Hospital was a charitable institution and had between 150-200 staff which included doctors and technicians.
“The BJP is being shown the door by 6.5 crore Gujaratis and a defeated BJP is clutching onto the polarising straws of blatant lies to reset the agenda. It will never succeed in its sinister conspiracies,” Surjewala said.
Replying to the charges, Patel tweeted, “My party and I appreciate the ATS’ effort to nab the two terrorists. I demand strict and speedy action against them. The allegations put forward by the BJP are completely baseless.”
Two suspected ISIS operatives were arrested by the Gujarat Anti Terrorist Squad (ATS) two days ago.
According to an FIR, one of the accused, Kasim Stimberwala, earlier worked as a technician at Sardar Patel Hospital in Ankleshwar. They had allegedly planned to carry out an attack on a Jewish synagogue in Khadia area of the city.
