THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Thursday faced sharp attacks from the Opposition UDF and the BJP for allegedly violating protocol even as a fresh wave of the Covid-19 pandemic is raging in the state. Demanding a police case against Pinarayi, Union minister and BJP leader V Muraleedharan told reporters in New Delhi that the Kerala CM had participated in election campaigns and roadshows attended by thousands of people after getting infected. Pinarayi also cast his vote on April 6 without following the protocol, he alleged.
“After getting infected, Pinarayi went to Kozhikode Medical College Hospital accompanied by a number of people including his gunman. Even when he was being discharged, he violated Covid norms. Pinarayi left the hospital within six days,” he said, and wondered if the same norms were applicable to the common man as well.
Later, the Union minister tweeted that Pinarayi was a ‘Covidiot’. He said there was no better word to describe a chief minister who continuously violates Covid protocol.Youth Congress state secretary and UDF candidate from Vattiyoorkavu Veena S Nair too came out heavily against Pinarayi, alleging that medical college authorities said Pinarayi started showing Covid symptoms on April 4–two days before polling day.
In a Facebook post, she said CPM workers would have destroyed her house if she had violated the protocol like the chief minister.Meanwhile, Mohammed Shan, a Youth Congress office-bearer from Malappuram, approached Governor Arif Mohammed Khan on Thursday with a complaint seeking action against Pinarayi for violating norms and not maintaining social distancing.