MP health minister’s remark on impotency draws flak from Congress

Congress leader Bhupendra Gupta called his statement “indecent”.

Updated on: Mar 16, 2018, 21:22:32 IST

Bhopal, Hindustan Times | By Neeraj Santoshi

Prefer HTon Google

Share via

Copy link

Madhya Pradesh health minister Rustam Singh’s statement outside the assembly on Friday that only a wife can tell whether a person is impotent has kicked off a controversy.

Congress MLA Sunderlal Tiwari had asked in a written question in the Assembly whether the state government had drawn up any plan for addressing the issue of “decrease in men’s sperm count and impotency”, especially in Rewa district. (PTI File Photo)

He was responding to a query from journalists outside the state assembly regarding an unusual written question during the budget session on Friday that sought to know if the state government had prepared a plan to tackle decreasing sperm count and increasing cases of impotency among men in the state.

The question was asked by Congress MP from Rewa district Sunderlal Tiwari.

When journalists asked him about it, the health minister said he was surprised that the legislator had come to know that sperm count was decreasing and cases of impotence were rising among men in Madhya Pradesh.

“Shukranu kam ho rahey hain, ye to kewal doctor hi bata sakta hai. Unhoney kaha ki napunsakta barh rahi hai, ye kewal us patee ki patni hi bata sakti hai (Doctors can confirm about decreasing sperm count, while a person’s wife can tell whether the person is impotent or not),” he told reporters.

The Congress MLA also sought to know if the state government had any plan to identify such persons and what was their number in Rewa district, his home turf.

In his written reply, Singh said there was no such plan, but added that the state government identified childless couples during health camps held for women.

Singh said they had identified 126 persons in Rewa who were childless and added that the government provided financial assistance for treatment to below poverty line childless couples.

To the query on how many districts had advanced tests and treatment facilities related to impotence, sperm count and so on, the health minister said such facilities were not available in district hospitals.

Reacting to Rustam Singh’s statement, Sunderlal Tiwari told reporters, “What can I say when our health minister makes such a statement that only wife can tell whether the person is impotent? There are different medical tests that can tell whether a person is impotent,” he said.

Congress state chief spokesperson KK Mishra said Singh’s statement was in poor taste. “He should not have said such a thing. It is actually doctors who can tell through diagnosis whether a person is impotent,” he added.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Neeraj Santoshi
Neeraj Santoshi is the Chief of Bureau for Hindustan Times in Uttarakhand, where he leads the state reporting team while covering government, politics, environment, wildlife, Uttarakhand High Court, and issues shaping the Himalayan region. With more than two decades in journalism across conflict zones, he has covered politically sensitive regions and environmentally fragile landscapes, and focused on stories that combine public interest with in-depth storytelling. An alumnus of Pune University with a Master’s in Communication Studies, he has reported extensively from Jammu & Kashmir (2003-2010), Madhya Pradesh (2010 to 2018 ) and Uttarakhand (Since 2018), covering subjects ranging from insurgency, elections and governance to wildlife conservation, mining, climate change, agriculture, human rights and social justice. He has covered politics and legislative assemblies of both Jammu & Kashmir and Madhya Pradesh over more than a decade. Before taking over as Chief of Bureau in Uttarakhand, he served as Special Correspondent with Hindustan Times in Madhya Pradesh and earlier reported for both Hindustan Times and The Indian Express in Jammu & Kashmir, where he covered state politics, environment and insurgency-related developments. Over the years, his stories have focused on environmental degradation, wildlife, illegal mining, governance and the changing social fabric of Himalayan states and Central India. He is particularly interested in long-form explanatory journalism, and stories that explore the intersection of ecology, conservation, governance and society. Outside the newsroom, Neeraj enjoys reading widely on neuroscience, consciousness studies, Artificial Intelligence and quantum physics, with a special interest in Kashmiri Tantric Shaivist traditions. He is also passionate about wildlife, mountaineering and the Himalayas, interests that continue to inform his reporting and deepen his understanding of the region he covers.Read More

Get the latest India News, breaking headlines and real-time updates from across the country. Stay informed about politics, government policies, crime, weather and major national developments.