Karnataka man posts COVID-19 patient's picture in WhatsApp, arrested

A 24-year-old man has been arrested in Vijayapura district in Karnataka for posting the photograph of a COVID-19 girl patient as his WhatsApp status photo with a derogatory message, police said.

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Anil Rathod on Saturday posted the picture of the girl student as status message with a caption, "Bad News Student got Positive" By putting her photograph as his WhatsApp status message, he tried to create fear among the masses and intentionally defamed her by making her photo go viral, the police said in a statement.

It is an offence to reveal the identity of the COVID-19 patients by taking the photograph and putting it in the public domain, the police said. Rathod has been booked under for spreading rumours and causing panic, they said.