Adityanath for ‘grand’ Janmashtami festivities

At a time when Uttar Pradesh is mourning the death of over 60 infants in Gorakhpur, chief minister Yogi Adityanath has directed preparations for a “grand Krishna Janmashtami celebration”.

In a communique issued on Sunday to DGP Sulkhan Singh, CM said: “Krishna Janmashtami is an important festival and the police should organise it in a traditional and grand way.”

Adityanath said that the festival celebrating the birth of Lord Krishna should be organised “with Indian traditions”.

Following the diktat, DGP Singh has written to all district police chiefs, SPs in the Railways and commandants of the Provincial Armed Constabulary (PAC) to adhere to the instructions.

A state Department of Information and Public Relations (DIPR) statement said such celebrations that had been done away with earlier, were being revived.

“This is ironical, tragic and in some ways reflective of the mindset of powers that be... They will go ahead with their agenda even in the wake of tragedies,” said AAP spokesman Vaibhav Maheshwari.

The BJP MP from Sultanpur, Varun Gandhi, on Monday pledged to use the fund allocated for his constituency to build a child care facility in the central Uttar Pradesh district amid an outrage over the death of over 60 children in Gorakhpur.

The children died in Baba Raghav Das (BRD) Medical College within a span of a week in Gorakhpur, chief minister Yogi Adityanath’s hometown and parliamentary constituency, after its liquid oxygen supply was cut since it failed to pay dues to the supplier.

Gandhi pledged ₹5 crore from his Member of Parliament Local Area Development - the amount legislators get every year for development work in their constituency - for creating a new wing at the district hospital in Sultanpur.

This, he said in a statement, will be accompanied by a matching grant of ₹5 crore more, which he will raise personally through donations.

“The human tragedy in Gorakhpur has left me jolted,” the 36-year-old MP said in the statement. “It is my hope that other MPs, who represent a rural constituency, also initiate something similar in their area to ensure our children’s care and protection.” HTC