Sadhu dies after 4-month fast to save the Ganga

DEHRADUN: Seer of Haridwar-based Matri Sadan Ashram, Swami Nigamanand, who was on fast for nearly four months demanding immediate stopping of quarrying in Ganga and shifting of Himalaya stone crusher from Kumbh mela area, on Monday died in a hospital near here.

District Magistrate of Haridwar R Meenakshisundaram said Swami Nigamanand (36) died at the Himalayan Institute of Medical Sciences at Jolly Grant this afternoon.

Nigamanand had begun his fast on February 19 and was in coma since May 2.

A postmortem of Swami Nigamanand would be conducted in view of the complaints of poisoning to him by his fellow sadhus of the ashram, the DM added.

The founder head of Matri Sadan Ashram Swami Shivanand had lodged a complaint against Chief Medical Superintendent (CMS) of Haridwar district hospital Dr P K Bhatnagar and owner of Himalaya Stone Crusher Gyanesh Kumar in Kotwali police station of Haridwar on May 11 alleging Swami Nigamanand was poisoned on April 30 during treatment, following which he went into coma on May 2.

Nigamanand was admitted to Haridwar district hospital. On April 30, he was given an injection by a nurse after which he went into coma on May 2, Swami Shivanand alleged.

Later, Nigamanad was shifted to the hospital in Jolly Grant.

Swami Shivanand alleged Nigamanand was given “Organo phosphat” through injection which led to deterioration in his condition.

Meanwhile, the Congress MLA from Tehri Kishore Upadhyay has accused Uttarakhand government of being responsible for the death of Nigamanand.

Upadhyay charged the death of Nigamanand has “exposed” the double standards of BJP government in Uttarakhand. “While the chief minister did everything to break the fast of Ramdev, he did not go to see even once another sadhu who was also admitted in the same hospital for fighting corruption,” he said.

Upadhyay said he and Union minister of state for agriculture Harish Rawat had also written letters to chief minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank requesting him to order an inquiry into the allegations of poisoning and send Nigamand to All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) for better treatment. “But nothing was done by the state government in this regard,” he added.

Responses