Gadkari falls sick at event, sits down during national anthem

In the latest health scare for Nitin Gadkari, the Union minister was on Thursday forced to sit down at a public event at Solapur in Maharashtra after feeling dizzy, his aide said.

The aide said doctors have attributed the "spell of dizziness" to a strong dose of antibiotics the minister took on Wednesday for a throat infection.

Later, after arriving in his hometown Nagpur, the 62- year-old BJP leader said he is "fine".

Gadkari felt dizzy while the national anthem was being played at the event, held at the Punyashlok Ahilyadevi Holkar Solapur University, the aide said.

Gadkari was the guest of honour at the function.

Even as Gadkari was standing for the national anthem, he leaned towards his left a bit and sat down with the support of his security guards who were standing behind him, as per the video footage of the function.

Gadkari's aide told PTI that the minister felt "uneasy" and was later checked by a medical officer in Solapur.

"He was already feeling warm and felt uneasy due to the reaction of antibiotics he had taken. After the check-up, the doctor confirmed that his blood pressure and blood sugar level were normal," the aide said.

"He had some throat infection and he took a rather strong dose of antibiotics on Wednesday evening. The doctors told us that today's dizziness was caused by the dose," he said.

"Doctors have asked us not to worry about his health. He will continue his tour," he said.

Later in the evening, Gadkari arrived at his residence in Nagpur.

Gadkari landed at the Nagpur airport at 6.45 pm.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, who was returning from Amravati after attending a rally organised as part of Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis's 'Maha Janadesh Yatra' met Gadkari at the airport.

After coming out of the airport, Gadkari told waiting media persons that he is "fine".

This is not the first time the veteran BJP leader has fainted on stage during public events.

There have been a couple of incidents in the last several months where he fainted at public events, apparently due to low sugar levels.

In December last year, Gadkari had fainted during an event in Ahmednagar. He was about to fall down when Maharashtra Governor C Vidyasagar Rao supported him, following which Gadkari was taken to hospital.

That incident happened during a convocation ceremony at the Mahatma Phule Agricultural University in Rahuri. The Union minister had addressed the gathering before the incident.

A few moments later, when the national anthem was being played, he fainted while trying to stand up.

In April this year, Gadkari fainted on stage while addressing an election rally near the temple town of Shirdi in Ahmednagar district.

He had fainted while walking towards his seat on the dais during the rally held at Rahata for Shiv Sena candidate Sadashiv Lokhande.