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West Bengal: Controversy over Covid-19 toll, CPM claims 30 deaths, govt says 7
The daily Ganashakti, the CPI-M’s Bengali mouthpiece, cited “sources” in the health administration and reported on its front page that 30 people had died in the state after being infected by the coronavirus.
The opposition Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) alleged on Wednesday that 30 people who tested positive for Covid-19 had died West Bengal though the state government said the death toll was only seven.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which has emerged the principal opposition to the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) in the state, has also accused the Mamata Banerjee government of suppressing death figures and misleading the people.
The daily Ganashakti, the CPI-M’s Bengali mouthpiece, cited “sources” in the health administration and reported on its front page that 30 people had died in the state after being infected by the coronavirus. It reported 25 people had died till April 13, and five more on Tuesday.
Chief minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday issued a strong warning to those ‘spreading misinformation’ about the number of deaths.
Without referring to Ganashakti, she said, “People are quoting numbers to make headlines. I warn everybody against doing so, as there is a Supreme Court order for preventing misinformation and we can take legal action. The number of deaths is being determined by an expert committee and not me.”
TMC spokesperson Snehashis Chakraborty, too, accused the CPM and BJP of spreading misinformation to create panic among the public. “The role of CPM and BJP is uncalled for,” Chakraborty said.
On Tuesday evening, BJP national general secretary Kailash Vijayvargiya targeted the state government and alleged four bodies were lying at a state-run hospital but the administration was not saying whether the deaths were due to Covid-19.
He tweeted that “4 dead bodies are kept in the isolation Ward of MR Bangur (covid) Hospital”, and gave details of the four people. In another tweet, he wrote: “Are these four bodies kept in MR Bangur hospital? Were they tested for corona? Had they got treatment properly? If these are not covid deaths then why aren’t bodies being handed over to the relatives of deceased? Why aren’t these deaths reflecting in covid bulletin of the state??”
BJP IT cell’s national head Amit Malviya also criticised the West Bengal government, tweeting that the relatives of patients had complained that bodies were decomposing in the isolation ward of MR Bangur Hospital, while the state government’s bulletin said “no one died of Covid in last 48 hrs”.
