Congress to hold march in Gujarat for Covid-19 death compensation

The Congress claimed more than three lakh people died in the state due to Covid-19

Testing underway in Gujarat. Credit: AFP Photo

The Congress in Gujarat said it will take out a march across the state on Monday to demand Rs 4 lakh compensation from the government for family members of each of those who died due to Covid-19. The 'Nyay Padyatra' (march for justice) will be taken out across eight metros and 33 district headquarters, the party said in a statement on Sunday.

Through the exercise, the opposition party aims to highlight the difficulties faced by the affected families in getting their applications cleared for the ex gratia compensation of Rs 50,000, it said. The party said it will also demand special compensation for the families of coronavirus warriors, who died due to the infection. These demands will be mentioned in the memorandums that the party will submit to district collectors at the end of the Nyay Padyatra, it said.

The Congress claimed more than three lakh people died in the state due to the "criminal negligence" and "clumsy administration" of the BJP government during the Covid-19 pandemic. It said it will expose the ruling BJP's "lies" by filling more than 45,000 forms for compensation.

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Chief spokesperson of Gujarat Congress, Manish Doshi, said people have to run from pillar to post to get their applications approved for compensation, which is "totally unreasonable and unjust and cannot be tolerated." The number of applications submitted by the next of kin of the deceased for Rs 50,000 ex gratia is way more than the state government's official Covid-19 death figure of 10,648, which has "exposed the BJP's real face, as it has been trying to hide the true death toll", he said.

While hearing a plea seeking ex gratia assistance to family members of Covid-19 victims, the Supreme Court, last Friday, reiterated that applications seeking compensation should not be rejected on technical grounds.

Doshi said, "The government should answer why it had to reject more than 15,000 applications, and why it has not publicised the issue of compensation in such a way that the poor and common man get information. The BJP government has been presenting only a rosy picture before the people by reiterating that the health of the people of Gujarat is a priority."

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