CHENNAI: AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami on Wednesday condemned the alleged rat bite incident at the Tiruchy Government Hospital, where a 68-year-old woman reportedly lost part of her toe after it was bitten by rats while she was undergoing treatment.
In a statement, Palaniswami described the incident as shocking and alleged that it reflected the poor maintenance of government hospitals under the present TVK government.
He questioned what explanation the government had for the elderly woman, who had sought treatment at a government hospital but allegedly suffered such an incident during her stay.
Palaniswami also criticised the state government, alleging that while people were facing hardships, ministers were preoccupied with watching the first show of the film Jananayagan and posting selfies on social media. He further claimed that several ministers, including the Chief Minister, had taken time off to watch the film.
The AIADMK leader urged the government to ensure the woman received proper medical care and demanded that adequate compensation be provided to her.
In a separate statement, Palaniswami announced that the AIADMK would stage a protest in Cuddalore against the proposed hydrocarbon project along the Parangipettai coast.
He said the protest would urge the government not to grant permission to Hindustan Oil Exploration Company to establish hydrocarbon wells and extract crude oil along the Parangipettai coast in the Chidambaram Assembly constituency.
Palaniswami said the protest would also condemn the TVK government for allegedly engaging in horse-trading by persuading MLAs elected on AIADMK tickets to switch allegiance.