Despite issuing an order banning large gatherings, including large-scale weddings, Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa attended the grand wedding celebrations of the daughter of BJP MLC Mahantesh Kavatagimath in Belagavi on Sunday.
The Chief Minister had advised citizens to put off weddings till the COVID-19 scare passed, or to restrict the number of guests to just around 100. But the wedding in Udyambag industrial area of Belagavi had many more times the number of visitors prescribed by him for the people of the State.
A police officer on duty at the venue estimated the crowd at over 3,000.
Hundreds of cars were parked on both sides of Khanapur road, outside the venue, which was decorated with flowers, buntings and rolls of paper and colourful cloth. Two huge banners about preventing the spread of COVID-19 were put up at the venue. There are wash basins at two ends and several hand sanitiser counters across the ground.
Apart from Union Minister of State for Railways Suresh Angadi, Minister Srimanth Patil and MLA Mahesh Kumathalli, there were several leaders from the BJP, Congress and JD(S) who attended the marriage. Some officials from the city corporation and district administration were also among the guests. The Chief Minister arrived around 11 a.m. and stayed for nearly an hour at the venue. He left after wishing the couple and greeting some leaders.
On his arrival at Sambra airport, Mr. Yediyurappa said the State was well-equipped to handle the spread of the infection. Over one lakh people have been tested, and among the 100 suspected cases, the virus has been detected only in a handful, he said. “One person has died. But otherwise, the situation is under control. Officers are working round the clock,” he said.
