The coronavirus outbreak at the Tablighi Jamat headquarters in New Delhi has taken a predictable turn. Around 400 people now spread over ma...
The coronavirus outbreak at the Tablighi Jamat headquarters in New Delhi has taken a predictable turn. Around 400 people now spread over many states who gathered there earlier this month have tested positive for the virus, and at least seven people have died. Not to relitigate the argument but there is definitely an element of selective justice at play here.
While the Delhi government has filed an FIR against the head of the Islamic organisation and other members for organising a gathering, other religious gatherings held at the same time should also come in for examination. The Tablighi Jamat seems to be a convenient scapegoat for our political leadership and bureaucrats to divert attention from their colossal mismanagement of the coronavirus crisis.
At the same time, the Tablighi Jamat leadership is not without blame. Even when the Central officials themselves announced on March 13 that Covid 19 was not a health emergency in India, Maulana Saad, ameer of the Jamat, should have reassessed operations at the Markaz or centre in light of the global situation.
Like an airport
First of all, there are always foreign nationals at the Markaz and some of them would have arrived after the outbreak started spreading globally. Granted, the government of India failed to communicate the severity...
