UP Minister's Trip To Hospital With A Gun Will Cost Rs 15 Lakh In Damages

Lucknow: An MRI scan machine worth crores has been out of use for at least two weeks now after a personal security officer of an Uttar Pradesh minister entered the room at a government hospital in Lucknow with a gun. The repair of the machine will cost over 15 lakhs.

On Friday, Uttar Pradesh minister Satyadev Pachauri was brought to Ram Manohar Lohia Institute of Medical Sciences after he collapsed during a political speech in Hardoi district, around 112 km from Lucknow. He was then taken to a room after the doctors recommended a MRI scan.

The security officer, who entered the room along with the minister - hospital sources say he could have forced his way in - had a gun with him. The machine pulled the pistol by its magnetic field and it got stuck on the scanner, damaging it. The MRI scanner stopped working after a loud noise.

It will take 15 days and close to 15 lakh rupees for the machine to be repaired, sources said.

An inquiry has been ordered in the case. Mr Pachauri, the minister of Khadi and Textile in Uttar Pradesh and his security officer could not be contacted.

The Medical Superintendent of the Hospital, Dr Subrat Chadra said, "I will put up big notices everywhere in the hospital that people should not enter restricted areas without permission. I am not sure how the security officer managed to go in, we have launched an enquiry into it. The machine itself will take over 15 days to come back to action."

The Dr Ram Manohar Lohia Institute of Medical Sciences is a super specialty government-run hospital that provides affordable medical treatment to poor. The out of order MRI machine, sources say, will affect poor the most as they can't afford expensive private centres and very few government hospitals in Lucknow have the facility.