Centre asks Rahul Gandhi to suspend Bharat Jodo Yatra, or follow COVID protocols amid rising cases globally

In the wake of the rising Covid-19 cases in several countries including China, Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya has written to Congress MP Rahul Gandhi and Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot urging them to ensure the strict implementation of Covid protocol during Bharat Jodo Yatra. Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya ask them to ensure that proper Covid guidelines are being followed. And in case, if proper regulations are not followed then the yatra should be stopped keeping in mind the 'public health emergency' situation, Mandaviya added. Mandaviya urged the Congress leaders to use masks and sanitisers in the yatra and that only vaccinated people should participate. Congress' Bharat Jodo Yatra is all set to enter the national capital, Delhi, on 24 December. Coincidentally, the letter to the Congress leaders was issued, on 20 December.

In response to Mandaviya's letter, Congress MP Karti Chidamabaram questioned the Centre for targeting only grand old party, that too, when there are no restrictions on other public gatherings.Chidambaram told ANI news agency, "I haven't seen the letter but what are the COVID protocols today? We don't seem to be having any enforceable COVID protocols in any other public gatherings. Why this sudden attention to Bharat Jodo Yatra if not that it is rankling the BJP?"Another Congress MP Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury asked the Centre whether Prime Minister Narendra Modi followed Covid protocols during the Gujarat elections.In a verbal attack against the union health minister, Chowdhury said, "I think Mansukh Mandaviya is not liking Rahul Gandhi's Bharat Jodo Yatra but people are liking it and joining it. Mandaviya has been deputed to divert public's attention".With Covid-19 cases on the rise in several countries including China, the Union Health Ministry raised an alert Tuesday and directed all states and UTs to sequence all positive case samples on a daily basis."ln view of the sudden spurt of cases being witnessed in Japan, United States of America, Republic of Korea, Brazil and China, it is essential to gear up the whole genome sequencing of positive case samples to track the variants through...INSACOG network," Health Ministry Secretary Rajesh Bhushan said in the letter to all states.The United States has warned the outbreak is now of concern to the rest of the world, given the potential for further mutations and the size of China's economy.