Corona spread: Jamaat, Delhi govt are both culpable
The Delhi-based headquarters of the Tablighi Jamaat in Nizamuddin, south Delhi, has suddenly become the latest Covid-19 hotspot in the country. The alarm bells started ringing when a 65-year-old man from Kashmir died on March 26. He had attended a religious gathering at Nizamuddin sometime in mid-March, which saw a congregation of over 1,800 people, including many from foreign nations. Officially, 1,033 people have been evacuated from the seminary, 334 hospitalised and 700 quarantined; 24 who attended the meeting have tested positive for the virus and at least 10 have died. The authorities have sealed the seminary’s premises and contact tracing efforts are underway.
Many are questioning why so many people were allowed to gather at one place even after the PM ordered a nationwide lockdown from the midnight of March 24 and banned mass gatherings. The Jamaat has issued a detailed statement where it has underlined that it had got in touch with the authorities and sought their help in evacuating the stranded followers. It has said the country observed the janata curfew on March 22. The same day, the Centre suspended all passenger and suburban trains. This was followed by Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal ordering a citywide lockdown from March 23.
Then on March 24, the PM announced a total lockdown. All these measures, the Jamaat has claimed, impeded attempts to clear out the seminary, prompting them to seek help. If this is true, then the Delhi government needs to answer many questions. Why did it not take immediate steps to address the situation? The Kejriwal government has written to the police, seeking an FIR against the religious outfit, but it needs to explain its own lapses. The Jamaat is also equally culpable. From early March itself, the MEA had started issuing guidelines and advisories, among them the mandatory home quarantine for those coming from abroad. Then on March 16, the Delhi government banned all congregations, religious or otherwise, of over 50 people. Why didn’t the Jamaat heed these orders? It certainly can’t escape blame.