A woman in India died after police allegedly confiscated her oxygen tank to give to a VIP patient, according to the Independent.
Usha Goyal, 53, was taken to a private hospital in the city of Agra, in Uttar Pradesh, India, after suffering from respiratory issues related to COVID-19, according to the report. Her 22-year-old son Anmol Goyal can be heard on video pleading with police, saying, “My mother will die if you take away her oxygen cylinder.” The reporter who captured the incident on video alleged police took Goyal’s oxygen tank to give to a VIP.
भईया मेरी मां चली जाएगी… A man cried and begged policemen not to take away the oxygen cylinder he arranged for his mother in critical condition.
The cylinder was reportedly confiscated from private hospital in Agra to supply it for a VIP. (1/2) pic.twitter.com/OHjR5Xvhcj
— Deepak-Lavania (@dklavaniaTOI) April 28, 2021
“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?” Anmol alleged.
Doctors reportedly told the brothers the hospital had no oxygen, and Usha died just two hours after her oxygen tank was taken, according to the Independent. (RELATED: India Can’t Cremate The Bodies Of COVID-19 Victims Fast Enough)
Agra Police in Uttar Pradesh denied the Goyal family allegations, claiming that the oxygen tank was taken to be refilled. Superintendent of Agra Police Rohan Botre alleged, “It was an empty cylinder being taken away from the hospital for refilling.”
“Three days ago, there was some oxygen shortage in the district because of which we were helping patients to refill cylinders. The person is crying only because he was requesting the police to help him with a cylinder,” Botre alleged.
India is currently suffering thousands of COVID-19 deaths per day, as overwhelmed hospitals face oxygen shortages, according to CNN. The country reported nearly 353,000 new coronavirus cases Monday.