"Shoot me, don't take away my oxygen cylinder "; Agra man's cry for help fails before adamant tehsildar

At a time when the nation is literally dying while gasping for breath, why would a public servant confiscate oxygen cylinders? Let alone go out of the way to arrange oxygen for a dying patient, why would anybody deprive a patient of it? The fact still hasn't sunk in for anyone who has been through the contents of a traumatic video gone viral wherein a man can be seen pleading Etmadpur Tehsildar Preeti Jain to allow him to take the cylinder for his father in critical condition. She, in the meanwhile, can be seen standing with one foot up on the oxygen cylinder, refusing to let go.

At a time when many of the healthcare and frontline workers and public servants have set an example and spun into action by facilitating the needy with cylinders, medicines, hospital beds, through social media and WhatsApp groups, the actions of the tehsildar set a wrong precedent. The incident has come to light from Uttar Pradesh's Agra district. 

That's not it

The officer is also said to have seized several oxygen cylinders from people waiting to get them refilled. As reported, the incident has come to light from Khandauli police station area of Agra. After people got angry about not getting the cylinder at the Ram Manohar gas plant, tehsildar Preeti Jain reached the spot and stopped the supply. In the following video, in the thread itself, the tehsildar can be seen asking policemen to turn out the pleading man.

The state of affairs in UP

UP has been at the heart of reports on India's colossal Covid mismanagement. With videos where the flames of funeral pyre resemble nothing less than the magnitude and area of a forest wildfire.

In a bid to control the State Government's image, earlier in the day, UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath asked officials to take action under the National Security Act and seize the property of those who "spread rumours" and propaganda on social media. He also said that there was no shortage of oxygen supply in any COVID-19 hospital, either private or government-run.

On Tehsildar Preeti Jain

This is not the first time tehsildar Preeti Jain has been in news. As reported by The Commune, in a letter to the CMO, Chauhan Hospital and Eye Care has alleged that Tehsildar Jain had also seized 15 of the 30 oxygen-filled cylinders from their facilities and accused her of causing severe hindrances in the day-to-day supply of oxygen.

But why? The angry posts and collective pubic fury started coming along. "Why did everyone just not get together then and there and beat her up?" questioned a user. Similar responses flooded the thread of the video, which has since gone viral.

International Business Times has tried reaching out to the tehsildar, but there has been no response as of this writing. We will update the copy once we hear back.