Coronavirus: Cell Phones Banned In Bengal Hospitals, BJP Links Move To Video

The video was apparently taken by a COVID-19 patient inside an isolation ward at MR Bangur hospital

The West Bengal government has banned the use of mobile phones inside hospitals, saying they are a risk as they could carry the coronavirus around. The BJP alleges the move has been spurred by a video that has gone viral, of two bodies lying in a ward full of COVID-19 patients.

Doctors, health workers and patients have been banned from using cell phones inside hospitals, the state chief secretary Rajiva Sinha said on Wednesday. Landlines and intercom would be installed for the use of patients in isolation wards, he said.

Union Minister Babul Supriyo, in a tweet this morning, linked the move to the video that he, too, has posted several times since Monday. NDTV has not independently verified the authenticity of the video.

The video was apparently taken by a COVID-19 patient inside an isolation ward at one of Kolkata's nodal hospitals, MR Bangur.

The most shocking part of the video is two dead bodies lying in the ward, waiting to be removed, even as other patients roam around or wait for medical attention.

The person who shot the video says in his commentary that the bodies were lying in the ward for two to three hours. One of the bodies appears to be covered with a plastic sheet. The other is surrounded by a cloth partition. There are patients sitting on either side of the body.

The union minister has been tweeting about the video, asking the Mamata Banerjee government to confirm or deny its veracity.

"What's very concerning is, inspite of this video being super-viral on all platforms, till now the West Bengal government of Mamata didi did not come up with any claim that this is a fake video or that the hospital is not Bangur!!That takes us Very Close to believing it is indeed authentic," Mr Supriyo tweeted this morning.

What's very concerning is, inspite of this VDO being super-viral on all platforms, TILL NOW the WB Govt of @MamataOfficial Didi, did not come up with any claim that this is a fake VDO or that the hospital is not Bangur!!That takes us Very Close to believing it is indeed authentic https://t.co/Ec92ByNdgg

— Babul Supriyo (@SuPriyoBabul) April 21, 2020

Mr Supriyo has claimed that the patient who shot the video tested negative and was discharged by the hospital but was picked up by the police. Mr Supriyo also said repeated phone calls to the number of the person who shot the video did not yield any result the phone was either switched off or out of range.

The state government has not officially commented on the episode.

Senior West Bengal minister Partha Chatterjee was quoted by Press Trust of Indi as saying that the authenticity of the video needed to be verified and if the contents were found to be true, the administration would take appropriate steps.

"We have to first check whether the video is true or fake, as we all know that the BJP specialises in spreading fake videos," Mr Chatterjee was quoted as saying.