An Assam MP shot off a letter to Union Home Secretary Ajay Kumar Bhalla on Tuesday asking him if Jagdish Mukhi, the State’s septuagenarian Governor, had not violated the COVID-19 protocols of the Ministry of Home Affairs by visiting Kokrajhar, 205 km west of Guwahati.
Biswajit Daimary, the Rajya Sabha member of Bodoland People’s Front (BPF), pointed out that the protocols require people above 65 years, persons with co-morbidities, pregnant women and children below 10 to stay at home, except for essential requirements and for health purposes.
The BPF is a minor partner in the Bharatiya Janata Party-led Assam government. The regional party has been smarting from the imposition of Governor’s Rule in four districts under the Bodoland Territorial Council (BTC) after its term expired without an election being held due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Prof. Mukhi visited Kokrajhar on Tuesday, almost a month after “assuming to himself the administration” of BTC.
“The Governor is 77. How can he visit a district and hold a meeting with 29 organisations defying the guidelines laid down for the elderly people?” Mr. Daimary asked. He wondered if the MHA had issued confusing lockdown guidelines.
At Kokrajhar, Prof. Mukhi asked officers to keep the BTC administration on its toes and follow all advisories of the Health Department. He also asked them to strictly adhere to all safety guidelines issued by the government on COVID-19.
