Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Wednesday said the government had quarantined at least 60 persons who had returned to Kerala from the Tablighi Jamaat centre at Nizamuddin in New Delhi in early March.
Mr. Vijayan said there was no cause for panic. The State had foreseen their return and ensured their quarantine. The police had helped identify and trace them.
Mr. Vijayan said the centre had organised meetings before the national lockdown. Scores of people in Kerala had visited the centre as part of their belief. The situation was the same in religious places of worship of other faiths in the country.
Divisive attempts
He said COVID-19 knew no religion or geographical boundaries. The government had stumbled upon attempts by some divisive elements to stigmatise people of a particular faith for the pandemic.
The State would not tolerate such devious attempts to assign blame to persons of a specific faith for spreading the infection. It would prosecute those who resort to such malicious propaganda. Such aggressive and communally charged messages have no place in a secular democracy.
Stranded film crew
Mr. Vijayan said the government had sought the help of Union Ministry of Home Affairs to extend aid to a film crew, including director Blessy and actor Prithviraj, who were stranded in Jordan due to the ban on international travel.
They had gone there as part of a cinema shoot. The Indian Embassy in Jordan has reached out to them and ensured their welfare.
Mr. Vijayan said the German government had conveyed its appreciation of Kerala’s efforts to track down 232 of its citizens spread out in Kerala during the epidemic. The country has informed the Centre and the State that their citizens had reached their homeland safely.
