Yesterday, Uttar Pradesh Police opened a history-sheet of 81 people in Gorakhpur district and Dr Kafeel Khan, who was named as the main accused of involvement in the deaths of several children in BRD Medical College in 2017, was amongst the top ten named in the list.
The inclusion of Dr Kafeel Khan’s name in the history-sheeter list has, on expected lines, ruffled the feathers of many Opposition leaders and their loyal journalists, who took to the micro-blogging site to pontificate as to why the Yogi Government’s decision was wrong.
Showering praises at the ‘doctor’, a member of the Rajya Sabha and also the spokesperson of the Rashtriya Janata Dal, Manoj Kumar Jha also Tweeted “A people’s doctor who reaches with a helping hand anywhere/everywhere is being called a history Sheeter. Shame! Shame!”
A people’s doctor who reaches with a helping hand anywhere/everywhere is being called a history Sheeter. Shame! Shame! #DrKafeel_is_not_historysheeter
— Manoj Kumar Jha (@manojkjhadu) February 1, 2021
Congress mouthpiece National Herald columnist Sanjukta Basu, too weighed in on the issue, calling it Yogi Adityanath’s personal egoistic battle against Dr Kafeel Khan.
Purveyor of fake news, Abhisar Sharma, too lamented about Khan being targeted by Yogi Government.
Tweeting in Hindi, Aam Aadmi Party supporter Vijay Fulara called the action taken against Dr Kafeel Khan a “political conspiracy”.
योगी द्वारा राजनीतिक षड्यंत्र कर @drkafeelkhan को फसाया गया।#DrKafeel_is_not_historysheeter
— #MeBhiRakeshTikait (@imfulara) February 1, 2021
Vijay Fulara was not alone. There were other AAP supporters who jumped on to the bandwagon.
.@drkafeelkhan is a Doctor.#DrKafeel_is_not_historysheeter
— Deep Prakash Pant (@deeppant2) February 1, 2021
And when it comes to speaking against the BJP government, Congress loyalists cannot be left far behind. They too weighed in, calling it UP Govt’s “vendetta”.
योगी आदित्यनाथ ने अपनी गलती छिपाने के लिए @drkafeelkhan को प्रताड़ित किया, जेल भेजा।
— Lalan Kumar (@LalanKumarINC) February 1, 2021
वह एक अच्छे इंसान हैं। सरकार उनसे अपराधियों जैसा व्यवहार न करे।#DrKafeel_is_not_historysheeter
UP govt and Mr. Yogi Adityanath should put an end to their politics of vengeance.
— Pankhuri Pathak पंखुड़ी पाठक پنکھڑی (@pankhuripathak) February 1, 2021
Let Dr Kafeel Khan be. He is a doctor who wants to serve people . Why the vendetta? #DrKafeel_is_not_historysheeter
Other Opposition party members including that of Samajwadi Party and Rashtriya Janata Dal were also irked by Yogi Government’s decision to implicate Dr Kafeel Khan.
@drkafeelkhan हिस्ट्री-शीटर नहीं हैं! हम सब उत्तर प्रदेश सरकार से मांग करते हैं कि डॉ कफील खान का नाम हिस्ट्री-शीटर से हटा दिया जाए! वह बहुत विनम्र और उदार व्यक्ति और मानवता वादी एक अच्छे डॉक्टर है जिसकी इस वक्त देश को आवश्यकता है!#DrKafeel_is_not_historysheeter pic.twitter.com/IcrNQqm2lu
— Preeti Chobey (@preeti_chobey) February 1, 2021
Dr Kafeel Khan was suspended after allegations of medical negligence was levelled against him in 2017 after 72 infants had died in BRD medical college in Gorakhpur due to lack of oxygen supply, and was arrested on that charge. Two years later, after a probe by UP police, the charges of negligence and corruption were dropped, but he was still charged with running a private practice and two other accusations. He was released in 2018 after spending 9 months in jail, and he still continues to be suspended from his job.
In January 2020, he was arrested for his speech at Aligarh Muslim University on December 10, 2019, during anti-CAA protests. He had allegedly remarked against Home Minister Amit Shah that he was a murderer whose clothes are foul with blood. He had also said that the CAA made Muslims second class citizens. He alleged that the students in the RSS run schools are taught that people with beard are terrorists and that with the CAA the government has told us that India was not our country. Khan had urged people to fight for their existence.
He was later booked under National Security Act. In September 2020, Allahabad High Court quashed his detention and ordered immediate release.
