By News18
Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Tuesday said that the state government is taking the surge in heart attack deaths in the state 鈥渧ery seriously鈥.
鈥淭he government has taken very seriously the matter of more than twenty people in Hassan district alone succumbing to heart attacks. To identify the exact cause of these series of deaths and to find remedial measures, a committee of experts has been formed,鈥 the Karnataka Chief Minister said in a post on X.
He further added that the panel will be led by Dr. Ravindranath, Director of Jayadeva Institute of Cardiovascular Sciences and Research, who will submit the study report in 10 days.
The Chief Minister said the panel will look into reasons for sudden deaths and youth and also study side effects of the COVID vaccine if any. 鈥淲hat are the reasons for the sudden deaths of young people and youth in the state? Could there be any side effects of the COVID vaccine? A comprehensive study was ordered to this same committee as early as February to investigate these questions. In this regard, the examination and analysis of heart patients are also in progress,鈥 he said.
Karnataka鈥檚 Hassan district is grappling with an alarming surge in heart attack fatalities, with Monday鈥檚 three deaths bringing the total to 21 in just 40 days. Particularly concerning is that a significant number of the deceased are young adults.
In the past month alone, in just one district of Hassan, more than twenty people have died due to heart attacks. The government is taking this matter very seriously. To identify the exact cause of these series of deaths and to find solutions, a committee of experts has been鈥
鈥 Siddaramaiah (@siddaramaiah) July 1, 2025
Those who died on Monday were Lepakshi, 50, from JP Nagar in Belur town, who collapsed suddenly after complaining of fatigue; Professor Muttayya, 58, an English professor in Holenarasipura, who suffered a fatal heart attack while having tea; and Kumar, 57, a D-Group employee in Channarayapattana, who succumbed to cardiac arrest after being hospitalised with chest pain on Sunday.
Karnataka health minister Dinesh Gundu Rao on Monday while speaking to News18 said: 鈥淲e wanted to find out exactly what鈥檚 going on. We took an initial look at the situation, and since there were about 18 cases in one month 鈥 some of them younger individuals 鈥 we felt it was necessary to get a proper scientific analysis done鈥.
He said the high number of deaths in one district alone, all reportedly due to heart attacks, was alarming. 鈥淲hat makes this case particularly concerning is that all of them are from the same district 鈥 Hassan. We鈥檝e asked the team of experts to go there, examine the causes of all the deaths and also check if similar cases are being reported in other districts. We have to see if the ratio is similar or if these cases from Hassan are unique,鈥 he further added.
鈥淲e are keeping a close watch on heart attack cases, especially among the 18-40 age group, which is why the numbers look high. It鈥檚 not only happening here, but we are logging every heart-related issue or death and monitoring it closely,鈥 Hassan MP Shreyas Patel told News18.
BJP Claps Back
BJP leader R. Ashoka has strongly criticised Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah for suggesting that side effects of the Covid-19 vaccine may be among the factors behind a surge in heart attack deaths in the state鈥檚 Hassan district. In a sharp response posted on X, Ashoka called the CM鈥檚 remarks 鈥渄angerous鈥 and 鈥渋rresponsible,鈥 accusing the Congress government of deflecting blame instead of acting decisively.
嗖灌簿嗖膏波 嗖溹部嗖侧硩嗖侧硢嗖膊喑嵿膊嗖 嗖囙菠喑嵿菠喑嗖氞硢嗖椸硢 嗖膏矀嗖驳嗖苦哺喑佮菠喑嵿菠嗖苦舶喑佮驳 嗖灌矤嗖距菠喑 嗖灌硟嗖︵帛嗖距矘嗖距菠嗖椸渤嗖苦矀嗖 嗖囙勃喑嵿勃嗖む硩嗖む矔喑嵿矔喑 嗖灌硢嗖氞硩嗖氞硜 嗖呧伯喑傕膊喑嵿帛 嗖硜嗖 嗖溹硛嗖掂矖嗖赤硜 嗖膊嗖苦帛嗖距矖嗖苦舶喑佮驳喑佮拨喑 嗖呧菠喑嵿帛嗖傕菠 嗖︵硜嗖冟矕嗖 嗖掂部嗖粪帛 嗖菠喑嵿菠喑 嗖嗋菠嗖傕矔嗖曕簿嗖班部 嗖硢嗖赤驳嗖｀部嗖椸硢. 嗖嗋拨嗖班硢 嗖囙拨嗖曕硩嗖曕部嗖傕菠 嗖灌硢嗖氞硩嗖氞硜 嗖嗋菠嗖傕矔嗖曕簿嗖班部 嗖膏矀嗖椸菠嗖 嗖庎矀嗖︵舶喑, 嗖 嗖掂部嗖粪帛嗖︵膊喑嵿膊嗖 嗖班簿嗖溹硩嗖 嗖曕簿嗖傕矖喑嵿舶喑嗋哺喑 嗖膏舶喑嵿矔嗖距舶嗖 嗖硣嗖溹驳嗖距铂喑嵿拨嗖距舶嗖 嗖菠喑嵿菠喑 嗖膏矀嗖掂硣嗖︵波嗖 嗖班补嗖苦菠 嗖膏硩嗖矀嗖︵波喑.
嗖溹波鈥 https://t.co/P18OxdPHzN
鈥 R. Ashoka (@RAshokaBJP) July 1, 2025
鈥淚t is deeply unfortunate that even as over twenty lives have been lost to sudden heart attacks in just one district alone, the Congress government is more interested in deflecting blame than in taking responsibility,鈥 he said, referring to the ongoing deaths in Hassan, where 21 people have died of cardiac arrests in the past 40 days.
Ashoka, however, questioned the motive behind raising the vaccine angle, stating, 鈥淭he COVID vaccine was not a BJP vaccine; it was India鈥檚 vaccine. Developed by our scientists, approved by regulators, and backed by data across countries.鈥 He added that the move to cast doubts on vaccination was 鈥渂oth anti-science and anti-people.鈥
The BJP also demanded transparency, asking the Congress government to publish real data on cardiac-related deaths, vaccine records, and rural health infrastructure. 鈥淭his is not leadership. This is cowardice,鈥 Ashoka said.