Singapore calls in Indian envoy, objects to Delhi CM’s comments on Covid strain

External affairs minister S Jaishankar said Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal “does not speak for India”, and external affairs ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said in a tweet that the Indian high commissioner P Kumaran clarified the matter with his Singapore counterparts.

Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal’s remarks about a new coronavirus strain being detected in Singapore led to the South-east Asian country on Wednesday calling in the Indian envoy to lodge an objection, and to a political war of words between the Centre and the Delhi government.

Earlier on Wednesday, Singapore foreign minister Vivian Balakrishnan quoted the Kejriwal’s original tweet and said: “There is no ‘Singapore variant’.” (File photo)

External affairs minister S Jaishankar said the chief minister “does not speak for India”, and external affairs ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said in a tweet that the Indian high commissioner P Kumaran clarified the matter with his Singapore counterparts. It is rare for the external affairs ministry to acknowledge that an Indian envoy has been called in by a foreign government to lodge a protest, and to publicly criticise an elected Indian representative.

In response to the foreign ministry’s comments, Delhi’s deputy CM Manish Sisodia hit out at India’s handling of the situation, and contended that Centre and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) were only concerned about their image globally, and not about the well-being of the country’s children.

“[Kejriwal] said that the danger of Covid-19 infecting more children is increasing. That is what it looks like going by the strain there [Singapore]... which is why it is necessary that we also remain alert... Singapore’s education minister had also given a statement that the risk of children getting infected is increasing. But today the BJP has started dirty politics on the issue,” Sisodia said.

“Had the foreign ministry been as quick to get vaccines from other countries as it was in reacting to Kejriwal’s statement, the children of India would have got vaccines,” he said.

Meanwhile, Singapore’s high commissioner Simon Wong told a virtual news conference his country was satisfied with the Indian government’s clarification, but reserved the right to invoke a domestic fake news law to prevent the spreading of misinformation.

Jaishankar tweeted that Singapore and India are solid partners in the fight against Covid-19, and appreciated Singapore’s role as a logistics hub and oxygen supplier. “However, irresponsible comments from those who should know better can damage long-standing partnerships,” he added.

Earlier on Wednesday, Singapore foreign minister Vivian Balakrishnan quoted the CM’s original tweet and said: “There is no ‘Singapore variant’.”

On Tuesday, Kejriwal said in his tweet in Hindi: “The new form of Covid-19 that has come to Singapore is being said to be extremely dangerous for children. In India, it may come as a third wave. My appeal to the Central government: 1. Air services with Singapore be cancelled with immediate effect 2. Priority on vaccine options should be worked out for children too.”

Hours after his tweet, Singapore’s health ministry dismissed his assertions, and said the variant prevalent in many Covid-19 cases in recent weeks was the “B.1.617.2 variant, which originated in India”.

Some experts have said India’s third Covid wave could affect children, but there is no scientific evidence to suggest that the virus specifically targets younger people. Children, however, are the only demographic group to be completely unprotected because vaccines are currently only given to those over 18.