Inhuman, power hungry: BJP gets flak over photo of ailing Parrikar on Goa bridge

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Photo: ANI

Priti Gandhi, a senior leader in the BJP Mahila Morcha, thought Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar’s inspections of two Goa bridges on Sunday were the “perfect example of dedication and commitment”. But others weren’t so quite delighted when they saw the photos. They noticed that Parrikar, who suffers from a pancreatic ailment, had a tube in his nose.

“How inhuman to force him to continue working and doing photo-ops,” said Omar Abdullah, the former chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir. “Why can’t he be allowed to deal with his illness without all this pressure and tamasha?”

Priyanka Chaturvedi, a spokesperson for the Congress party, sounded just as horrified. “Take care CM saab, because clearly, your party won’t,” she tweeted.

Parrikar, 63, inspected an under-construction bridge on the Mandovi river on Sunday. It was his first public appearance since he returned to Goa on October 14, after being hospitalised at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences in Delhi. Later, he inspected another bridge.

Officials said Parrikar had been recuperating at his house since October 14, and that this was the first time he moved out of it.

The Congress has been alleging that Parrikar’s ailment and his absence from office have brought Goa’s administration to a standstill.

Inputs from PTI