Maharashtra home minister Anil Deshmukh put the Union home ministry in his line of fire on Wednesday, holding it responsible for the spread of coronavirus because it failed to stop the gathering organised by the Tablighi Jamaat in Delhi last month.
In a statement, Deshmukh questioned why permission was given for the Ijtema organised by the Tablighi Jamaat at its headquarters in Delhi’s Nizamuddin area and wondered about the “secret talks” between Jamaat chief Maulana Saad and National security Adviser Ajit Doval.
He also asked why Tablighi Jamaat head Maulana Saad was absconding after Doval visited its headquarters.
He also wanted to know why Doval and the Delhi Police Commissioner have been silent on the issue.
“What were the secret talks that took place between Doval and Maulana Saad past midnight after the former visited the Jamaat headquarters in Nizamuddin? Why Maulana Saad is absconding day after their meeting and where is he now?” the statement reads.
On Tuesday, Deshmukh who belongs to the nationalist Congress Party (NCP), warned 50 to 60 Jamaat members who attended the Nizamuddin event programme of stern action against for not reporting to the authorities despite several appeals. He said that out of 1400 such members who attended the programme, the others have been traced by the authorities.
The Tablighi Jamaat had organised a religious gathering between March 13 and 15 which was attended by more than 2000 people, including many foreigners. The gathering is now suspected to have been the catalyst for the spike in the number of Covid-19 cases in different parts of the country after the members returned home. Last week, the Centre blacklisted 960 foreigners who attended the event in violation of their visa conditions.
On Tuesday, Maharashtra became the first state to record more than 1,000 cases of coronavirus.
Various state governments have also asked Jamaat members to report to authorities if they had attended the Nizamuddin event.
On Monday, NCP chief Sharad Pawar had asked who gave permission for the Tablighi Jamaat in New Delhi.
