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Covid norms go for a toss during political gatherings in Baroda
The BJP, INLD, Congress and Loktantra Suraksha party leaders have been holding meetings and rallies in villages of the constituency, which is going to polls on November 3.
People in Haryana’s Baroda assembly constituency have been gathering in large numbers to attend political meetings and rallies without following Covid-19 norms even as the state continues to register ample infections daily.
The BJP, INLD, Congress and Loktantra Suraksha party leaders have been holding meetings and rallies in villages of the constituency, which is going to polls on November 3. People in the constituency wait to get a glimpse of their leader and nobody follows social distancing or wears masks.
Haryana’s nodal officer for Covid-19, Dhruva Chaudhary, said political parties should educate their cadre to implement government guidelines for the pandemic. “The party workers and politicians should wear a face mask and wash their hands regularly,” he added.
A doctor from Rohtak’s PGIMS, on condition of anonymity, said such large gatherings could emerge as super spreader of the virus and people should not take it lightly. “Politicians should refrain from organising big rallies. A large number of people attend the public meetings and rallies and mostly nobody wears a face mask. It is the responsibility of every politician to adhere to safety guidelines and then pass these instructions to their followers,” the doctor said.
Rakesh Sharma, a resident of Bhanderi village in Baroda, said no one is talking about the Covid-19 pandemic as a poll issue and it looks like the virus has disappeared, especially from this rural constituency. “Politicians and their followers have been going around freely without wearing face masks and putting the lives of people at risk. If any politician gets infected, he/she will go to a private hospital in Gurugram and Delhi but the villagers will have to visit civil hospitals, where facilities or treatment are abysmal,” he added. He said people from other areas of the state are coming to Baroda and no one is keeping tab on their health status.
