The National Rural Health Mission (NRHM) scam has claimed yet another life.
Dr Shailesh Yadav, 45, a deputy chief medical officer posted in Varanasi was killed in a road mishap, on Friday night on the outskirts of Varanasi.
Dr Yadav was in charge of Pindra Primary Health Centre. The incident took place near Babatpur market.
Five staff members of the health department who rushed to the accident site on getting the news of Dr Yadav’s death, also met with an accident and two of the nurses — Shiv Kumari and Savitri — died on the spot. Dr Yadav had recently been summoned by the CBI for questioning in the NRHM scam.
Though his family members remained tight-lipped, his colleagues said they suspected foul play behind the accident.
According to eyewitnesses, Dr Yadav was driving his Maruti Zen car when the truck trailer moving in front of his car suddenly applied brakes and dr Yadav’s car rammed into the trailer.
The police has started investigating the causes of the mishap.
This is the fifth unnatural death related to the UP health department and the third after the NRHM scam came to light. Two CMOs, Dr Vinod Arya and Dr V.P. Singh were shot dead in October 2010 and April 2011 respectively.
Deputy CMO Y.S. Sachan was found murdered inside the Lucknow jail in June last year and then last month, project manager of UP Jal Nigam Sunil Varma committed suicide after he was interrogated by the Central Bureau of Investigation.