In a bizarre turn of events, three women belonging to Tablighi Jamaat, who had stayed at a quarantine centre in Jharkhand, have been found to be pregnant.
These women, all foreigners, were part of the group arrested in Ranchi on the charges of violation of lockdown guidelines and visa rules. "An FIR was registered against 17 foreigners in Ranchi's Hind Pidhi police station in March for violating lockdown guidelines and visa rules. These people, including few couples, were put up in a quarantine centre at Khel Gaon. Eventually, they were shifted to Birsa Munda Jail in Ranchi on May 20," a source in the Hemant Soren Government informed DH over phone on Thursday.
The Jharkhand High Court, however, granted these apprehended persons conditional bail earlier this week. Before they were released on July 21, the HC reiterated that till disposal of the case, they cannot leave India and will have to stay here and appear before the court as and when required.
"When they came out of jail, it was found that the three women were three months pregnant," the source said and added the Soren Government has constituted a probe panel to investigate the matter. "An officer in the rank of Additional Collector will investigate how physical distance was not maintained by the inmates at quarantine centre and who was the in-charge of the Centre when these people were lodged there," the source, refusing to be identified, averred.
All the 17 apprehended persons, including nine males and four couples, had travelled from New Delhi to Ranchi in March-end after attending the Tablighi event in the national capital. One of the Malaysian woman was the first to be found Covid-19 positive.
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