Family members of the late transporter Prakash Pandey who had committed suicide citing financial woes, continued their protest on the fourth day on Monday. Officials reached the protest site on receiving information about Pandey’s widow Kamala Pandey’s health deteriorating. However, when they tried to get her admitted to the Government Medical college hospital, the family members objected and maintained that they would continue their protest against the State Government’s failure to fulfill the assurances earlier given to the Pandey family. To prevent the situation from escalating, the officials desisted from taking her to the hospital but got a doctor to check her health condition at the protest site.
As the officials reached the proterst site, news spread in town about the attempt to shift Kamala Pandey to the hospital. local Congress leaders including the Haldwani Mandi Samiti head Sumit Hridayesh reached the protest site. Hridayesh had a heated argument with the city magistrate.
He was of the opinion that the District Magistrate should have come to the protest site. The Government should first fulfill the assurances it had given to the family, he added. Meanwhile, Prakash Pandey’s parents and his widow reiterated that they would not end their protest demonstration. The parents said that they too would end their lives like their son had done but they would not give up their protest.
On hearing the determined statements of the protesting family, officials of the district administration desisted from continuing their attempts to take Kamala Pandey to the hospital.
The protesting family members alleged that the State Government was going back on its word by not fulfilling the assurances given to the Pandey family shortly after his demise. Meanwhile, Hridayesh opined that the authorities were underestimating the protest by the Pandey family.
He further said that the Nainital district magistrate who had communicated the assurances to the Pandey family should come to the protest site to talk to the demonstrating family members. However, the authorities are influenced by the politics of the Bharatiya Janata Party, he alleged.
The district Panchayat head Sumitra Prasad, former MP Mahendra Pal Singh and others were also among those present to support the protesting family members.