Bhubaneswar: His health has been the subject of much speculation in the political circle. So much so that even some Goa Congress leaders went public with the assumption that he may not be alive.
However, putting all rumors to rest, Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar made a rare public appearance on Sunday while inspecting bridges in his state, two months after media grabs showed the ailing CM being wheeled out of AIIMS Delhi in a bed after being discharged. He had remained absent from public eye since then.
Parrikar is suffering from advanced pancreatic cancer and has been to United States as well for treatment. On December 13, he turned 63.
On Sunday, the frail-looking CM, with a tube inserted in his nose, inspected two bridges in Goa. He was seen engaged in a discussion with the onsight engineers. Two doctors accompanied him while he inspected the bridges over Mandovi river. He also appeared clasping on railings for support to stand firm in a TV footage.
His gesture, however, did not go down well with the Opposition, terming such act as “inhuman” and a desperate attempt by BJP to stay in power.
Congress spokesperson Priyanka Chaturvedi suggested that Parrikar should rather take care of himself as his party wont be doing that.
Is that a tube that is inserted in his nose? Can a party be so power hungry to make a man work despite his illness? With BJP impossible is nothing….to grab power, latch on to power.
Take care CM Saab, because clearly, your party won’t. https://t.co/xBwv5qXvtb— Priyanka Chaturvedi (@priyankac19) December 16, 2018
“Is that a tube that is inserted in his nose? Can a party be so power hungry to make a man work despite his illness? With BJP impossible is nothing….to grab power, latch on to power. Take care CM Saab, because clearly, your party won’t,” she tweeted.
National Congress leader and former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said that BJP was resorting to “tamasha” out of his health.
He has a tube inserted through his nose into his digestive tract. How inhuman to force him to continue working & doing photo ops. Why can’t he be allowed to deal with his illness without all this pressure & tamasha? https://t.co/iq0dwXCHmE
— Omar Abdullah (@OmarAbdullah) December 16, 2018
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Parrikar’s prolonged absence is being seen in political circle as signs of BJP losing grip over the state. The Congress has been alleging that the CM’s absence has brought the administration to a standstill.
Recently, the Goa bench of the Bombay High Court had raised concerns about an affidavit filed before it by the state chief secretary, mentioning that the details of Parrikar’s health cannot be disclosed under the right to privacy.
Parrikar has been a formidable force in Goa BJP, and some would say its founding pillars. The party took a beating in the state when Prime Minister Narendra Modi brought Parrikar to Delhi and made him the Defence Minister. The BJP had replaced Parrikar with Laxmikant Parsekar as the state chief minister. However, Parsekar could not match Parrikar’s clout. In the 2017 Assembly election, Parsekar lost with the highest margin of 7,000 votes and the BJP’s strength too came down from 22 to 13.
