Odisha Minister courts controversy by drawing blood from donor at govt hospital

After showering money on a singer and dancing to the tune of a controversial song, Odisha Labour and ESI Minister Sarada Prasad Nayak has courted controversy again. Several eyebrows were raised when Nayak turned doctor and drew blood from a donor during a recently organised blood donation camp at the Rourkela Government Hospital.

As per reports, a blood donation camp was organised at the Rourkela Government Hospital on the occasion of Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik’s birthday. Nayak inaugurated the blood donation camp.  

During the camp, Nayak superseded a nurse and measured the blood pressure of a blood donor. Subsequently, he pricked the needle and drew blood from the donor. The video of the incident has reportedly gone viral on various social media platforms.

Many have questioned how he could draw blood without having any prior experience and expertise.

“The blood donor requested me to draw blood and I obliged him with the help of a health worker. During the Covid-19 pandemic, when people were afraid to come outside, I was working with the health workers for 24 hours,” said Nayak.

Earlier, Nayak hogged the headlines for reportedly showering money during a music programme organised at a hotel in Sundargarh district. He was also in the news for dancing to the tune of ‘Mein Hun Don..’ song in a meeting.

“The renowned qawwali singer was singing the glory of the country and the audience wanted to honour him. They requested me as a public representative to honour the singer. However, it is quite unfortunate that the matter has been portrayed in a bad light,” said Nayak.

Commenting on his controversial dance, Nayak said, “It was a festive occasion. People know that I used to dance a bit during my student days. Hence, they requested me to dance and I just danced one step on the song. I am a conscious citizen and I am fully aware of my actions which are not intended to do any harm to society.”

Meanwhile, Opposition BJP and Congress slammed Nayak for his acts.

“Under BJD’s rule, the Ministers have no value, and bureaucratic governance is going on. After watching the video of the Minister showering money, it seems he has a lot of money. When people in our district are not getting two square meals a day, it feels very bad to see a minister splurging money like this,” said BJP MLA, Shankar Oram.

“The Minister is trying to divert the attention of the people by giving the false notion that he is serving them. Perhaps he doesn’t have the knowledge that two persons including a government official were recently murdered in the district. Without thinking anything about it, indulging in dancing and merrymaking is very tragic,” said Congress leader Amita Biswal.