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Man Dies After BJP Municipal Council Chief Reportedly Holds Up Ambulance For 30 Minutes

The BJP leader has denied the allegations.
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In what seems to be another case of VVIP apathy, a patient has died in Haryana after an ambulance was reportedly halted by a BJP municipal council chief when the ambulance hit his car.

The Hindustan Times reports that Naveen Kumar was being rushed to a cardiologist when the ambulance his the car of Darshan Nagpal. The ambulance was reportedly stopped at the Lal Batti Chowk in Hisar.

While a complaint has been filed by the man's nephew Arun Kumar, he told the newspaper that Nagpal fought with the driver of the ambulance over compensation for hitting his car which delayed his uncle's treatment, causing his death.

NDTV quoted Sitaram Soni, the brother of the deceased, as saying, "He tailed our car and stopped our ambulance, demanding compensation for damages. The doctor told us if only you had come 15 minutes earlier, we could have saved him."

Nagpal has meanwhile denied these allegations.

He told The Hindustan Times, "The ambulance driver hit my car from the rear near the old bus stand. The driver stopped his vehicle to check it, but as there was a patient inside we asked him to leave. All the allegations against me are baseless, and I am ready to join the police investigations."

Reports suggest both parties have been called to the police station over the issue.

This incident comes at a time when the Narendra Modi government has been trying to clamp down on India's VVIP culture where anyone with a government position enjoys immense power and often misuses it.

The Modi government, in a cabinet meeting, had taken the decision to ban the use of red beacons from May 1 this year. However, red beacons are only part of the problem. Traffic is often stopped to make way for VVIP cavalcades.

In April, a video showing Delhi police stopping an ambulance with a child inside went viral on social media. They had stopped the ambulance near Rajghat to make way for a VVIP convoy.

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This article exists as part of the online archive for HuffPost India, which closed in 2020. Some features are no longer enabled. If you have questions or concerns about this article, please contact indiasupport@huffpost.com.