UP Health Minister, 3 MLAs self-isolate after attending same party with Kanika Kapoor

Uttar Pradesh Health Minister Jai Pratap Singh on Friday self-isolated himself after attending the same party that of singer Kanika Kapoor, who tested positive for Coronavirus on March 20. Along with the state Health Minister, Uttar Pradesh MLAs -- Pankaj Singh, Dhirendra Singh, and Tejpal Nagar -- have also self-isolated themselves until the arrival of Jai Pratap Singh's COVID-19 test reports 

So far various leaders like Congress' Jitin Prasada, BJP's Vasundhara Raje and her son Dushyant have gone into self-quarantine after attending a party with Kanika Kapoor. Meanwhile, the Lucknow police have booked Kanika Kapoor on charges of negligence for attending various social events in the city last week despite being infected with coronavirus and having been instructed by the authorities to isolate herself at her home.

Kapoor has been booked under Sections 188, 269, and 270 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) at Sarojini Nagar police station in the city. The FIR was lodged based on a complaint filed by the chief medical officer (CMO) of Lucknow. According to police, Kapoor had arrived in Lucknow on March 11 and was found COVID-19 positive at the airport. She had travelled to London a few days back. She was asked by the authorities to quarantine herself for the required period as per the rules. However, she ignored the instructions and went on with her social engagements. Kapoor had stayed at the city's Taj Mahal hotel.

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"For the past four days I have had signs of flu, I got myself tested and it came positive for Covid-19. My family and I are in complete quarantine now and following medical advice on how to move forward," said Kapoor in the post. The singer also revealed that contact mapping of people who have been in touch with her is also underway. Meanwhile, all the events attended by her will be thoroughly investigated for the list of visitors and locations. The District Magistrate Lucknow will investigate the matter and submit the report to the state's Home Department.

Coronavirus India 

Novel coronavirus cases in India rose to 258 on Saturday after 35 fresh cases were reported in various parts of the country, according to the Health Ministry. Among the 258 are 39 foreign nationals, including 17 from Italy, three from the Philippines, two from the UK, one each belonging to Canada, Indonesia, and Singapore. The total figure also includes four deaths reported from Delhi, Karnataka, Punjab, and Maharashtra.

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"The total number of active COVID-19 cases across India stands at 231 so far," the ministry said, adding that 23 others have been cured/discharged/migrated while four have died. Delhi has, so far, reported 26 positive cases, which include one foreigner, while Uttar Pradesh has recorded 24 cases, including one foreigner.

Maharashtra has 52 cases, including three foreigners, while Kerala has recorded 40 cases, which include seven foreign nationals. Karnataka has 15 coronavirus patients. The number of cases in Ladakh rose to 13 and Jammu and Kashmir four. Telangana has reported 19 cases, which include 11 foreigners. Rajasthan has also reported 17 cases, including that of two foreigners. Gujarat has reported seven cases so far.

Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Uttarakhand have reported three cases each. West Bengal, Odisha and Punjab each reported two cases while Puducherry, Chhattisgarh and Chandigarh reported one case each. In Haryana, there are 17 cases, which include 14 foreigners. 

(With agency inputs)

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