Panvel,October 08: The selection of venues in the vicinity of hospitals and schools for the rallies of AICC General secretary Rahul Gandhi today had the opposition BJP fuming with the party alleging violation of the model code for the October 13 elections. BJP alleged that the Congress leader”s poll campaign meetings in Panvel and Aurangabad caused inconvenience to patients.
The rally at panvel was held next to the Government rural hospital, while the one at Aurangabad was scheduled adjacent to the casualty ward of MGM hospital. As roads were blocked and tight security arrangements were in place at the Shree Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj ground in Panvel, the rural hospital saw decline in the number of patients coming to OPD in the morning, hospital staff told PTI. On an average, around 300 patients are examined in the OPD every day.
“Today, very few patients visited as roads to the hospital were blocked,” a staff member said. BJP leader Kirit Somaiya said there was a violation of poll code as the rally was held outside a hospital.
“Before granting permission for the rally, local authorities should have ascertained if there was any violation of the poll code,” he said, adding patients were inconvenienced due to loudspeakers in the vicinity, he said.
—-Agencies