Who's a Delhiite, Chidambaram asks CM after hospitals reserved for residents

A day after Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal announced that all beds in government-run and private hospitals would be reserved only for residents of the national capital, former Union Finance Minister P Chidambaram asked the Aam Aadmi Party chief who was a Delhiite.

In a couple of tweets, posted on Monday (June 8), the Congress leader also questioned whether one was a Delhiite if the person lived or worked in Delhi. He also wondered if Kejriwal had taken legal opinion before he had made the announcement.

Mr. Kejriwal says Delhi hospitals are only for Delhiites. Will he please tell us who is a Delhiite?

If I live or work in Delhi, am I a Delhiite?

— P. Chidambaram (@PChidambaram_IN) June 8, 2020

“I thought if a person had enrolled in Jan Arogya Yojana/Aayushman Bharat, he can seek treatment in any enlisted hospital, public or private, anywhere in India?” Chidambaram said in a tweet.

On June 7, Kejriwal said the government had decided to reserve around 10,000 beds in hospitals run by the Delhi government for residents. He added that all could use the beds in Central government hospitals and private ones that do specific surgeries.

Related News: Kejriwal goes into self-quarantine; to be tested for COVID on Tuesday

He said the government made the decision based on the advice of a special panel of five doctors. The doctors had estimated that the national capital would require 15,000 beds by the end of June, Kejriwal added.

The panel’s report also stated that if people from other states were allowed to get treatment in hospitals in Delhi, all beds here would be occupied within just three days.

The national capital has reported 28,936 confirmed cases of COVID-19, so far. While 10,999 people have been either cured or discharged from hospitals, there are 17,125 active cases in Delhi. It has also witnessed 812 deaths.