Cops seek CCTV footage of Markaz, register of attendees

The total number of positive Covid-19 cases increased from 293 to 386 on Friday, of which 259 are linked to the Tablighi Jamaat that took place in Nizamuddin early March.

The Delhi Police has sought details of the number of CCTV cameras inside the headquarters of the Tablighi Jamaat at Nizamuddin, which has emerged as the single largest source of Covid-19 infections across the country. The police also asked Tablighi Jamaat’s head, Maulana Saad, to preserve the footage.

Drones being used by municipal employees to spray disinfectant during a sanitisation drive at Nizamuddin West in New Delhi. (Biplov Bhuyan/HT PHOTO)

Saad and six other top management officials of Tablighi Jamaat are currently facing a probe for defying restrictions on gatherings. In the first information report registered by the crime branch, Saad and others have been accused of defying the state government’s orders of March 13 and 16.

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The state government, on those dates, had banned all gatherings, including religious ones.

Other details sought by the investigating officers pertained to the “original register/data/and records maintained by the management of the Markaz” with regards to those who participated in the congregation since March 12, including foreigners. Question number 17 in the police’s letter is related to details of the action that the management took to disperse the gathering after the government’s order on March 13.

Saad’s lawyer, Fuzail Ayyubi, said they would send a reply to the police at the earliest. He also denied reports on social media that Saad was absconding or had been summoned by the police. “Police have requested us to provide answers to some questions, under Section 91 of the Criminal Procedure Code. We are filing the questionnaire and will provide a detailed response. We are complying with the police’s directions and will cooperate. The maulana is in self-isolation, as advised by the doctors. He is not absconding.”

The total number of positive Covid-19 cases increased from 293 to 386 on Friday, of which 259 are linked to the Tablighi Jamaat that took place in Nizamuddin early March. The death toll went up from four on Thursday to six on Friday. Three of the six deaths were linked to the Nizamuddin Markaz, the biggest hot spot of the Covid-19 infections.

Meanwhile, the police, along with the Delhi government and the ministry of home affairs, is identifying the places where those who attended the Markaz might have visited. District administration officials said the list of people, who could have come in contact with those who tested positive from the Markaz, is being prepared by the Central government. “They do the first round of contact tracing and send us the list. We then execute the standard operating procedure, which is to go to these people and quarantine them accordingly. In the process, we might find more people who could have come in contact,” a senior official said.

Another official said a tracking centre has been set up in Laxmi Nagar, from where the list of contact tracing is generated and sent to all districts in the city. “The local police and the district administration get these lists and, then arrange home visits and calls,” the official said.

“In this case (of Markaz), we are mostly testing all those who possibly came in contact with those who tested positive. Some, who were in close proximity to the Markaz, have been advised home-quarantine,” the official said.

A senior official said the local administration is deploying civil defence volunteers to assist Delhi Police to reach out to all the contacts. “The process has taken us a lot of visits and it is still on. We are also getting inputs from other states, where people from the Markaz have tested positive. So, they are being asked to identify the places they visited and the people they met. Based on their responses, the respective state governments give us additional input and we send out teams there,” a third official said.