COVID-19: BJP leaders resist opening Karnataka border to Kerala

BJP leaders in Karnataka have launched a concerted attack on Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on opening the state’s border during the coronavirus-driven lockdown.

The Kerala High Court has ordered the Centre to remove blockades erected by Karnataka on the National Highway linking to Kerala and ensure movement of vehicles carrying patients in need of urgent medical treatment.

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Kasaragod in Kerala has a high number of coronavirus cases and Karnataka’s road blockade toward Mangaluru has sparked a huge row. Kerala had moved court against Karnataka’s “inhumane” stand after four people died in Kasargod as they could not reach Mangaluru for treatment.

“Karnataka has fewer COVID-19 cases compared with Kasargod district. If the border opens, there’s no doubt that patients from there will come to Mangaluru for treatment,” BJP state president Nalin Kumar Kateel, who represents Dakshina Kannada in the Lok Sabha, said in a tweet, hashtagged #SaveKarnataka.

“The only effective remedy for COVID-19 is social distancing. That’s why borders are closed. It's foolish to bring them to Mangaluru for treatment. The Kerala government prides on the Kerala Model, but when it comes to healthcare, it depends on another state, which is unfortunate. In the face of the deadly COVID-19, the first priority is to protect the people of our state,” Kateel said.

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BJP’s Mangalore City North MLA Bharath Shetty accused the Pinarayi Vijayan government of failure. “Fifty percent of COVID-19 cases in Wenlock are from Kasargod. With the failure of Pinarayi Vijayan administration and healthcare facilities, Kasargod alone has 100+ cases which is the total count of Karnataka. We can’t let this pandemic spread to Dakshina Kannada,” he said.

The party’s Belthangady MLA Harish Poonja asked Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa not to open the state’s border to Kerala. “Dear Pinarayi Vijayan, if you can’t take care of OUR Kasargod, give it back to Karnataka. We will take care of them. But don’t play politics with COVID-19,” he said.

With the border row flaring up, former prime minister H D Deve Gowda has urged Yediyurappa to allow movement of ambulances on “humanitarian” grounds.

But Karnataka has its own reasoning for closing its borders. According to a March 31 order issued by Additional Chief Secretary (Health & Family Welfare) Jawaid Akhtar, cross-border movement of patients into the state for treatment or diagnosis was restricted “in view of a severe shortage of health facilities in the state of Karnataka.”