AAP's Sanjay Singh slams Centre over foreigners at Markaz, alleges 'they weren't screened'

AAP Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh on Tuesday raised questions on how foreign nationals were allowed to attend the religious congregation at the Markaz Nizamuddin without getting screened for the novel coronavirus or quarantined. He alleged that this constituted “gross negligence” on the part of the Ministry of Civil Aviation, the Ministry of External Affairs and the Delhi Police. Moreover, he cried foul over the directives issued by the Delhi government on March 13, 16, 19 and 21 being ignored.  

Read: Adityanath Cuts Short Visit To COVID-affected Districts, To Hold Meeting On Nizamuddin Fallout

The religious congregation at Markaz Nizamuddin

A controversy erupted when a religious congregation was held at Markaz Nizamuddin, the Tablighi Jamaat international headquarters in mid-March defying the social distancing norms. As per the Delhi government, this was in violation of the prevailing orders, which prohibited large gatherings. Earlier in the day, Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain confirmed that 24 people who were at the Tablighi Jamaat congregation tested positive for the novel coronavirus. 

Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal directed an FIR to be registered against the organizers of the religious congregation. However, the Markaz claimed that it had not flouted the rules and discontinued the religious function after the announcement of the nationwide lockdown. Instead, it alleged that many of the attendees were stuck due to the unavailability of transport services. 

Read: Timeline Of How Nizamuddin Markaz Led To Becoming Delhi's Potential COVID-19 Hotspot

MHA issues clarification

According to the Ministry of Home Affairs, 1746 individuals including 216 foreigners were staying in the Markaz building as of March 21. After the MHA's advisory on March 28, the police personnel in different states identified 2,137 persons associated with the Tablighi Jamaat in order to screen them for the novel coronavirus and quarantine them. Meanwhile, the MHA revealed that 1203 Tablighi Jamaat workers in the Markaz Nizamuddin have been medically screened since March 26 out of which 303 symptomatic patients have been referred to different hospitals. On the other hand, the remaining people have been sent to quarantine centres in Narela, Bakkarwala and Sultanpuri. 

Read: 'Telangana Still Enumerating Nizamuddin Attendees' Says Minister KTR As 300 Hospitalised

Read: COVID-19: MHA Reveals '2137 Markaz Attendees Quarantined Across India'; 1746 In Nizamuddin