Goa CM Manohar Parrikar admitted to hospital, his office says for tests
The Chief Minister’s Office said he was in stable condition but required an endoscopy.
Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar was admitted to the Goa Medical College and Hospital late on Saturday. The Chief Minister’s Office said that Parrikar’s condition was stable, but that he was taken for an “upper GI endoscopy”, a procedure used for internal examinations of the body.
A team of doctors from the All India Institute of Medical Sciences in New Delhi were scheduled to arrive in Goa on Sunday evening to attend to Parrikar, PTI reported.
“Honourable Chief Minister taken to Goa Medical College for upper GI endoscopy. His health condition continues to be stable. He will remain there under observation for around 48 hours,” the CMO’s statement said, according to PTI.
Parrikar has been unwell since February 2018 and was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, which was made official only in October.
Goa minister Vijai Sardesai has refuted speculation that Parrikar has been put on life support and is in critical condition, News18 reported. Another minister Vishwajit Rane said that Parrikar was admitted to hospital for tests and will go home in a day. “I spoke to him (Parrikar), tomorrow he will go home,” PTI reported Rane as saying. “The chief minister is a fighter. He told me to go home. He is under observation. There is nothing to worry about or speculate. He is absolutely fine.”
State Deputy Assembly Speaker Michael Lobo earlier this month said Parrikar’s disease has no cure. Lobo had earlier been critical of the government under Parrikar, as he claimed work had been affected by the chief minister’s absence.
Parrikar had made very few public appearances since October, when he returned to Goa after being discharged from the All India Institute of Medical Sciences in Delhi. However, he presented the state Budget on January 30. During his speech, Parrikar had said, “Today, once again I promise that I will serve Goa with sincerity, integrity, and dedication until my last breath.”
The former defence minister was also in the news after Congress chief Rahul Gandhi brought him up in allegations he had made regarding the Rafale defence deal. Parrikar had denied the allegations.