Sushil Koirala's death sparks 'controversy' in Nepali media

Kathmandu The sudden and unexpected death of former prime minister Sushil Koirala earlier this week has sparked a controversy in Nepal giving rise to questions in the media like why his illness was kept in the dark and why was he not taken to a hospital for treatmentNepals major dailies on Thursday a day after Koirala 76 was cremated with state honours on the bank of the holy Bagmati river raised several questions related to his death and dragged Koiralas personal doctor and aides in the controversyKoirala had undergone radiotherapy for lung cancer in 2014 and surgery for tongue cancer 10 years ago in the US He died on Tuesday due to pneumoniaKoirala was a bachelor and used to live with Shashank Koirala a close relative He was looked after by his niece and other family membersHours before his death on Monday night Koirala collapsed in the bathroom writes Nepals major national daily Kantipur raising questions like why was he not taken to hospitalThere was a small wound on his forehead which was covered by sandalwood paste but his aides and doctor claimed that Koirala collapsed on Saturday not Monday the daily wroteDoctors politicians activists journalists and other social network users have raised doubts over Koiralas death and termed it sheer negligence the Nepali language daily saidKoirala was also under pressure due to the upcoming 13th general convention of the party Kantipur wroteTo elect the new leadership the party held local elections across Nepal and Koirala was looking forward to a second term but he was challenged by aspirants from the Koirala family itself and party vice president Ram Chandra PoudelAt least three hospitals are located within onekmradius of Koiralas residence but none of his aides and doctors felt the need to take him to any for a checkup the daily wroteDifferent kinds of statements made by his private doctor and his aides also added fuel to the controversyThe first photo released after his death by the Nepali Congress whose president Koirala was clearly shows that there was something wrong with his forehead and there was a blood spot on the white cloth that covered his bodyWhy was he not taken to a hospital when he was suffering from an illness asked another Nepali language daily Naya PatrikaKoirala was consuming sleeping tablets without a doctors prescription after he complained of sleeplessness prior to his deathHis private doctor Karbir Nath Yogi had earlier said that it is extremely harmful for people with lung problem to consume sleeping tablets and had stopped prescribing sedatives to KoiralaHis face was swollen and his health condition was eroding on Monday the daily addedAnother report in the English daily The Kathmandu Post titled Was Koiralas illness kept in dark also raised the question of political expediencyKoiralas illness was concealed by his aides who wanted to showcase him as a healthy figure for their own benefit in the convention contended Nepali Congress lawmaker Ram Hari KhatiwadaClose aides of the former prime minister knew about the seriousness of his illness but recklessly endangered his health in the hope that it would not be fatal before the convention The Kathmandu Post reported citing Khatiwada