‘Mantri ji ke bete aaye hain…’: Row over video of Jharkhand minister’s son ‘inspecting hospital’

The video, which was posted with background music, also showed one of Kirsh’s friends saying, “Koi taqleef hai to batayiye, mantri ji ke bete aaye hue hain, bade bete (If there’s any issue, please speak up. The minister’s son is here, the elder son).”

The video sparked a controversy, with Opposition parties in the state questioning the authority of the minister’s son to conduct such inspections in hospitals.

BJP spokesperson Ajay Sah said that instead of focusing on health infrastructure, the son of Jharkhand’s Health Minister was more concerned with shooting a reel.

“Are we now to believe that the children of health ministers will conduct hospital inspections? Will the children of finance ministers start reviewing government files? Will the children of home ministers begin registering FIRs at police stations?” he asked.

Sah said that rather than reprimanding his son or showing him the right path, the minister has chosen to justify the incident, and that this allegedly showed that his son acted with the full approval of the minister.

“As for the Congress party, it appears that Irfan Ansari is following in the footsteps of Rahul Gandhi, working to settle his entire family into politics from an early stage,” Sah said.

Minister Ansari issued a detailed statement, defending his son and calling the allegations against him “baseless, misleading, and politically motivated”.

“Understand the truth. My son, Krish, is being wrongly dragged into this,” the minister said, claiming that Krish had not visited the hospital for official inspection or political visibility.

“He had gone to see the ailing father of his teacher, Aditya Kumar Jha, who is admitted at RIMS (Rajendra Institute of Medical Sciences, Ranchi). Around the same time, some Adivasi families approached us at our residence, distressed about the treatment of their relatives at the hospital. Krish accompanied them out of concern, not for any political purpose,” Ansari said.

During the visit, Ansari said Krish also extended help to a relative of a senior journalist admitted to the hospital. “He acted purely on humanitarian grounds. The way this incident is now being twisted to suit a political narrative is extremely unfortunate and worrying,” the minister said.

Calling Krish “an educated and sensitive young student currently on vacation”, the minister said public service runs in the family. “He is the grandson of former MP Furkan Ansari, who contributed to the Jharkhand statehood movement. It should not surprise anyone that he would be naturally inclined to help others,” Ansari said.

“Krish keeps asking me, ‘Papa, is it a crime to help people?’ This question breaks me from within. My son has not committed any crime, nor has he acted out of arrogance or power. He saw someone in distress and tried to help,” the minister said.

He appealed for sensitivity in public discourse and urged people to “remove the lens of politics” when assessing the situation. “This is an insult to a young man’s empathy. If we start vilifying every hand raised in help, what direction are we taking our society in?”

Despite the controversy, Ansari said Krish remains undeterred. “He may be heartbroken, but his resolve to serve others remains strong,” he said.