Tamil Nadu Minister K P Anbalagan tests positive for COVID-19; Under treatment

Tamil Nadu Higher Education Minister K P Anbalagan, who was actively involved in COVID-19 containment efforts in this metropolis, has tested positive for Coronavirus, two top sources in the government told DH on Friday.

Anbalagan is being treated at a private hospital after his swab samples returned positive on Thursday. He went to the hospital on Wednesday for a check-up and tested positive for coronavirus the next day.

The Minister is part of a committee constituted by Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami to oversee and coordinate COVID-19 containment efforts in Chennai, which has over 37,000 cases. Anbalagan was given in-charge of three zones in the city a fortnight ago.

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“Yes. He tested positive for COVID-19 and is under treatment,” two top government officials told DH. Both officials are a crucial part of COVID-19 containment efforts in Tamil Nadu.

The minister had also attended a review meeting on Wednesday in which nearly half-a-dozen of his colleagues also participated. Anbalagan was also part of the media briefing that the ministers held after the review meeting. The press briefing was criticised as ministers did not follow social distancing protcols.

Anbalagan is the first minister in the Tamil Nadu cabinet to get infected with coronavirus. Two MLAs – J Anbazhagan of DMK and K Palani of AIADMK – also tested positive for COVID-19. However, Anbazhagan died on June 10 on his 62nd birthday, while Palani is under treatment.

Though the government was silent on Anbalagan’s health, Opposition Leader and DMK President M K Stalin said he spoke to the Higher Education Minister over phone after hearing that the latter tested positive for COVID-19.

“He (Anbalagan) should recover fast and come back to serve the people. People who are in public life should be more careful and exercise caution (while stepping out),” Stalin said.

The Minister testing positive for coronavirus set the alarm bells ringing as he was quite active in COVID-19 containment efforts till a couple of days ago.

Later, the Ministers, including Anbalagan, spoke to the media during which social distancing norms were thrown to the wind. The impromptu press briefings by ministers have come under criticism from the public, who have been taking to social media to ask those in power to “practice what they preach.”

Anbalagan, who hails from Dharmapuri district, was elected to the Tamil Nadu assembly from Palacode constituency in 2011 and again in 2016. He was appointed Higher Education Minister by the then Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa in 2016.