A gut-wrenching viral video of a youth pleading with the Uttar Pradesh police to not confiscate an oxygen cylinder meant for his ailing mother has left social media aghast and stunned.
"My mother will die," the man is heard saying on the video, which went viral, as police officials looked on with the cylinder being moved in the background.
The 53-year-old woman, suffering from Covid-19, passed away two hours after the incident, The Wire reported. The Wire identified the young man as Anmol Goyal, a 22-year-old. “The only thing that the doctor said would help her – an oxygen cylinder – was taken away from us,” he told the publication.
The cylinder was reportedly taken to be given to a VIP.
However, the Agra Police have claimed that the video and the claims are fake.
“It was an empty cylinder being taken away from the hospital for refilling,” Agra city Superintendent of Police Rohan P Botre said.
A different story?
The Goyal family, however, has a different tale to tell.
They said after great difficulty and several phone calls, they were able to arrange for an oxygen cylinder. One of the sons then set out to arrange for a regulator as the hospital had run out of cylinders and equipment, according to the report.
Meanwhile, the hospital staff allegedly took the cylinder that was lying next to the bed of their mother.
The son, who is seen in the video, was down on his knees, screaming with folded hands, to not take it from them. "Meri ma mar jayegi," he said ("My mother will die").
“When I asked the ward boys why they were taking away our oxygen cylinder, they told me that they want to save somebody’s life. Who is that somebody? And is my mother’s life not valuable enough?” he asked.
The hopital staff tried to quell the angry sons and shooed them away when they asked questions, the report cited.
DH was not able to independently verify the information.
'Broken', 'Heartbreaking'
Meanwhile, social media was full of rage and grief over the incident. Several criticised the ruling BJP and PM Modi for lack of empathy towards those losing their lives and families to the deadly coronavirus.
Social media platforms have been abuzz with cries for help and stories of loved ones lost as shortage of beds, oxygen cylinders and remdesivir has kin of patients scrambling.
India reported its highest single-day rise of over 3.86 lakh Covid-19 cases on Friday as the health infrastructure is still grappling to deal with this overwhelming health crisis.