BREAKING: Union Minister Shripad Naik Seriously Injured In Accident, Wife Vijaya Naik, PS, Brought Dead To Hospital

Panaji, Goa: Union Minister for Ayush and Minister of State for Defence Shripad Bhau Naik was admitted to a hospital in Uttara Karnataka in a serious condition after the vehicle he was traveling in met with an accident.

Police said Shripad Naik, along with his wife, personal assistant Deepak, his close confidante Sai Kiran, gunman (bodyguard) and the driver were heading from Yallapur to Gokarna on Monday night. On the way, the driver lost his control over the car near Hosakambi village in Ankola Taluk of Uttara Kannada and the vehicle overturned.

The minister, his wife and his private secretary were travelling together and met with an accident when the car in which they were travelling toppled and turned over.

The other co-passengers who were in the car at the time of the incident have been identified as Sayikiran Sethiya, Gunmam Tukaram Patil and driver Suraj Nayak. They are being treated at the government hospital.

His wife Vijaya Naik and private secretary were declared “brought dead” at the hospital, while Shripad Naik is battling for his life. Another report, said Vijaya Naik died in hospital.

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The incident happened at Hosakambi village of Ankola taluka in Uttara Kannada district.

According to ABP News, Naik was travelling from Yellapura to Gokarna in Karnataka. There were four people in the car including his wife. The driver lost control of the vehicle. All injured have been rushed to Ankola government hospital. His wife was said to be in critical condition succumbed to the injuries.

The minister’s personal secretary Deepak Gome passed away in the accident.

The white Toyota car in which Naik was travelling was badly damaged in the accident.

EXCLUSIVE | Images of the accident involving Union Minister Shripad Naik at Ankola Taluka

Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke to the Goa CM Pramod Sawant and asked the CM to ensure that Naik got the best treatment possible.

Media reports claimed that the Minister is stable with a few injuries and is brought to the Goa Medical College and Hospital (GMC) at North Goa for treatment.

More details are awaited.

The sad news was confirmed by Goa NRI Commissioner Narendra Sawaikar who tweeted:

Naik had recently recovered from Covid-19.

This is a developing story. We will update this page as more details are available.

Who is Shripad Naik?

Shripad Yesso Naik (born 4 October 1952) is an Indian politician and the Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) in the Ministry of Ayurveda, Yoga & Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homoeopathy (AYUSH) and Minister of State for Defence.

Shripaad Naik was born on 4 October 1952 at Adpai village, North Goa District, Goa

He was the former Union Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare. He is a Member of Parliament from North Goa constituency, representing the Bharatiya Janata Party.

In 1999, Naik was elected to the 13th Lok Sabha from North Goa constituency in Goa. As of 2019, he has held his seat in this constituency winning in 2004, 2009, 2014 and 2019 elections. As of 2019, he is a member of the 17th Lok Sabha. In 2014 Lok Sabha Election, he won with a margin of 105,000 votes which is very high for a small state of Goa.

Further, as advised by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the President appointed Naik as Minister for Culture and Tourism (Independent Charge) in the 16th Lok Sabha.

Naik was appointed Minister of State (Independent Charge) of the Ministry of AYUSH, Government of India, on 9 November 2014. On 25 March 2016, Naik publicly stated he had access to research which proved that diseases such as cancer could be cured by yoga.

Naik continued as Minister of State (Independent Charge) for AYUSH and was appointed as Minister of State for Defence on 31 May 2019.

He received the Samaraj Ratna Award on 18 August 2016.