Hundreds still flout coronavirus lockdown norms, despite Tablighi alarm

From weddings and funerals to religious gatherings, people continue to flout the 21-day lockdown despite the warning bells sounded by Tablighi Jamaat congregation that has proved to be a super-spreader of COVID-19, accounting for more than 30% of the infections across the country.

According to the Health Ministry, there were 3,577 confirmed COVID-19 cases across the country, with the total number doubling every four days as of Sunday.

But still, there have been instances from across the country of people turning out in hoards to celebrate Ram Navami or Palm Sunday, ignoring the lockdown to arrest the spread of COVID-19, that has infected 1.2 million people and killed 66,503 world wide.

In Andhra Pradesh’s East Godavari district, police arrested a pastor for congregating 150 persons at a church for Palm Sunday prayers ahead of Easter Sunday.

In Rajasthan’s Bundi and Ramnagar districts, nearly 1000 people had gathered for a religious ritual ‘Neja ki Savari’ on Friday, catching the state police off guard. People were perched atop the terraces of homes and gathered on the streets as a procession passed by.

Police swung into action after the celebrations were over, registered an FIR and arrested five persons for violating the lockdown.

About 120 km from Bundi lies Bhilwara, a district that has been under strict curfew after the outbreak of COVID-19, that forced the administration to launch massive contact tracing exercise covering 28 lakh people across the district.

In Morena, located in the fabled ravines of Chambal region in Madhya Pradesh, attending a feast after a funeral proved to be costly for at least 10 persons who tested positive for COVID-19.

A waiter who had returned from Dubai reportedly ignored the COVID-19 symptoms and went about visiting his near and dear ones to invite them for the feast in the memory of his mother who passed away last month.

More than 1000 people attended the feast on March 20, much before the lockdown was announced. The district administration swung into action after the waiter and his wife tested positive for COVID-19 on April 2.

According to a PTI report from Morena, 26,000 persons have been placed under quarantine in the district after contact tracing of those who attended the funeral feast.

In Chandigarh, a renowned Gurbani exponent and Padmashri awardee Bhai Nirmal Singh Khalsa passed away on April 2, while undergoing treatment for COVID-19. Singh had attended a pre-wedding ceremony in Chandigarh on March 19, and 84 persons who were present there were placed under quarantine.