Mystery shrouds Barwala youth’s death

Panchkula, September 2

A 26-year-old youth from Barwala, who worked as a tempo driver, died under mysterious circumstances at the Civil Hospital yesterday morning.

The family of the deceased, identified as Rohit, alleged that he died due to a Covishield dose, which he was administered to him on August 28.

His brother Mohit said, “He (Rohit) fell ill and developed chest pain after taking the first dose of the Covid vaccine. We took him to a hospital in Barwala, but his pain dissipated only for a brief period. After he showed no improvement, we rushed him to the Civil Hospital, where he died.” The Civil Surgeon, Dr Mukta Kumar, refuted the allegations, claiming that the Covid vaccine was not the reason behind his death.

“He (the patient) was an intravenous (IV) drug user. On August 31, the patient was reported to the psychiatry ward of the Civil Hospital where he was given sedatives to manage his aggressive behaviour,” she said.

“We will also examine records to ascertain if he had been receiving treatment at the psychiatry ward for drug abuse,” she added.

Reiterating that there was no link between his death and the vaccine, she stated that the post-mortem report of the patient conducted yesterday was awaited.

A source in the Health Department said the actual cause of death would become clear after the viscera report was received.

“Preliminary examination suggests that the patient had a build-up of excess fluid around the heart (pericardium). It is mainly caused by infection. For further confirmation, we have sent his viscera for examination,” he said.

The SHO of the Chandimandir police station, Inspector Arvind, said they had not received any complaint from the family in this regard. —TNS