VK Singh Faces Backlash On Tweet Asking for Hosp Beds, Clarifies

Union Minister General Vijay Kumar Singh landed himself in a controversy after a tweet on Saturday, 17 March, that the public perceived as reflecting the snowed under healthcare system.

The Union Minister of State for Road Transport and Highways posted a tweet on Saturday addressed to the Ghaziabad District Magistrate, asking to help someone who's brother needed a bed, and that beds were not available in the constituency.

Singh issued a clarification for the tweet after it was received in poor taste. The tweet resulted in many comments about how a minister, with his resources and privileges can’t find adequate healthcare facilities, indicative of the struggle of the general public in acquiring the same.

Issues Clarification

The clarification, however, was deleted minutes after being posted, but can be seen here. Singh, a Ghaziabad MP noted that he shared the tweet as a bond of “humanity”, and the person in question was not his brother by blood.

Singh then posted a fresh tweet slamming the public for calling him out. He noted that he is amazed at the “IQ level” of the trolls and iterated that the requirement of the beds have been sorted by the DM and the Chief Minister’s Office.

Uttar Pradesh on Sunday reported its largest one-day spike of 30,596 new COVID cases and 129 deaths.

Reactions By Politicians and the Public

Shiv Sena MP, Priyanka Chaturvedi highlighted the “helplessness” of Singh, an elected representative, in finding a "single bed in his constituency".

Here, Hon. MP and Minister has forwarded a plea received by him to the DM. But this tweet in itself explains the helplessness of an elected representative& his inability to find a single bed in his constituency.
I hope the patient gets the help needed and is fine soon https://t.co/iAX8VTwegN

— Priyanka Chaturvedi (@priyankac19) April 18, 2021

MP of Ghaziabad, Ex Army Chief has to ask for help via twitter itself explains the situation in UP the largest state of India. We hope CM does some work for health sector rather then just changing names of places

— ।। काल्केया।। (@JaiMahishmiti) April 18, 2021