He also urged the Trinamool Congress in Goa to support the Congress party in the poll-bound state to prevent division of votes…reports Asian Lite News
The Congress on Thursday likened Aam Aadmi Party national convener Arvind Kejriwal to All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen’s Asaduddin Owaisi, both of whom, the opposition party leader Randeep Surjewala said, were being sent to states by the BJP in order to split the anti-BJP votes.
“There are two people, which the BJP sends wherever it is losing. One is AIMIM and second is Kejriwal and AAP. They will wear separate hats, they will seem to be opposing the BJP. But let no Goan be mistaken. At the end of the day, AAP runs its government with the assistance and help of BJP,” Surjewala told a press conference in Panaji.
“There are imposters here who are BJP’s B-team. They are here to assist the BJP and provide cover fire. We need to be wary of such forces, who wear the white topi, but actually wear the RSS (Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh) colours inside,” he also said, while referring to the Aam Aadmi Party.
“Otherwise so many scams happened in Delhi, there is no way they would have been able to rule. He (Kejriwal) would have been behind bars, if 10 per cent of those scams were to be investigated and taken to a logical conclusion in a court of law,” Surjewala also said.
He also urged the Trinamool Congress in Goa to support the Congress party in the poll-bound state to prevent division of votes.
“In a democracy everybody has a right to fight, I’m not disputing their right, but in democracy everyone has to understand and comprehend and think and introspect whether by their act and deeds, knowingly or unknowingly, whether they are giving cover fire to the BJP,” Surjewala said.
Kejriwal, during his recent visit to Goa, had also said that Utpal Parrikar was free to contest on an AAP ticket, if he wishes to…reports Asian Lite News
Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant on Thursday slammed his Delhi counterpart and Aam Aadmi Party national convener Arvind Kejriwal, accusing him of being a hypocrite and of fishing in troubled waters.
Sawant’s criticism of Kejriwal came soon after the Delhi CM once again reached out to late Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar’s son Utpal to join the AAP, after the BJP rejected his claim to contest from the Panaji assembly constituency, a seat represented by his father since 1994.
“Hypocrisy! Person whose entire party & politics is based on shallow opportunism should brush up his memory & remind himself of his own filthy comments used against one of the greatest leaders Shri Manohar Bhai Parrikar. Mr. Opportunist…” Sawant said.
Earlier on Thursday, Kejriwal had tweeted: “Goans feel v sad that BJP has adopted use and throw policy even with Parrikar family. I have always respected Manohar Parrikar ji. Utpal ji is welcome to join and fight elections on AAP ticket”.
Kejriwal, during his recent visit to Goa, had also said that Utpal Parrikar was free to contest on an AAP ticket, if he wishes to.
Utpal Parrikar had put in a request with the BJP high command to contest from the Panaji seat. The BJP, which released its first list of 34 candidates for the February 14 Goa polls, has instead picked sitting BJP MLA Atanasio Monserrate as its candidate from Panaji. Monserrate, who faces charges of raping a minor and several other criminal cases including one involving leading a mob which attacked a city police station in 2008, had won the 2017 state assembly bypolls — which were facilitated after the death of Manohar Parrikar — on a Congress ticket. He had however joined the BJP along with nine other Congress MLAs in a midnight coup in 2019.
During the devastating second wave of the pandemic in the country in April 2021, the Chief Minister along with his wife Sunita had tested positive for the virus…reports Asian Lite News.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Tuesday announced that he has tested positive for Covid-19, adding that he has “mild symptoms” and was isolating at home.
Taking to Twitter, he said: “I have tested positive for Covid. Mild symptoms. Have isolated myself at home. Those who came in touch wid me in last few days, kindly isolate urself and get urself tested.”
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convener had campaigned in Uttarakhand on Monday after having visited Punjab and other poll-bound states like Goa.
During the devastating second wave of the pandemic in the country in April 2021, the Chief Minister along with his wife Sunita had tested positive for the virus.
Tuesday’s development comes as the daily Covid-19 cases in the national capital is on the rise, with the city reporting 4,099 fresh infections and a positivity rate resting at 6.89 per cent until Monday evening.
The new cases have pushed up the infection tally to 14,58,220, while the death toll stood at 25,110.
Both are the highest since May 18, 2021, when the city logged 4,482 fresh cases at a test positivity rate of 6.89 per cent.
On December 29, 2020, the Delhi Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) had ordered a ‘yellow’ alert in the capital which is declared when the infection rate continues to be either at the mark of 0.5 per cent positivity for two consecutive days or crosses it.
Of the cases being reported in the national capital, 81 per cent are that of the new Omicron variant, Health Minister Satyendra Jain had said in the Legislative Assembly on Monday.
The capital has, so far, detected 351 Omicron cases, of which 57 have been discharged from the hospital.
The DDMA is likely to strengthen the already existing restrictions to curb the spread of the virus.
While ideally, the yellow alert should be followed by amber, but Delhi’s positivity rate has crossed 5 per cent — mark set for imposition of red alert in the capital.
In either of the alerts, the already existing restrictions will be strengthened with a few places, activities being completely banned under the level 2 (amber) restrictions and a complete lockdown in level 4 (red).
Delhi Chief Minister Kejriwal on Tuesday tweeted about an alleged “new form” of COVID-19 in Singapore and claimed it is very dangerous for children, reports Asian Lite News
Singapore Ministry of Health (MOH) on Thursday invoked its anti-misinformation law, the POFMA or Protection from Online Falsehoods & Manipulation Act against Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal who tweeted about the coronavirus variant from Singapore.
The MOH instructed the POFMA Office to issue General Correction Directions to Facebook, Twitter and SPH Magazines Pte Ltd (HardwareZone forum), read MOH statement. Facebook, Twitter and SPH Magazines are required to carry the Correction Notice to all end-users in Singapore who use Facebook, Twitter and HardwareZone.com.
Under this, the social media giants will be required to make corrections and clarifications are regarding falsehoods on the “Singapore” strain.
The correction notice of MOH reads, “There is no new “Singapore” variant of COVID 19. Neither is there evidence of any COVID-19 variant that is ‘extremely dangerous for kids.”
It further reads that “the strain that is prevalent in many of the COVID-19 cases detected in Singapore in recent weeks is the B.1.617.2 variant, which originated from India. The existence and spread of the B.1.617.2 variant within India predates the detection of the variant in Singapore, and this has been publicly known and reported by various media sources from as early as 5 May 2021.”
Earlier Delhi Chief Minister Kejriwal on Tuesday tweeted about an alleged “new form” of COVID-19 in Singapore and claimed it is very dangerous for children.
“New form of coronavirus in Singapore is said to be very dangerous for children. It could reach Delhi in the form of a third wave. My appeal to the Central government: 1. Cancel all air services with Singapore with immediate effect 2. Work on vaccine alternatives for children on a priority basis,” Kejriwal had said.
Kejriwal’s remarks evoked responses and caused some alarm.
Singapore High Commissioner Simon Wong on Wednesday came down heavily on Arvind Kejriwal for his tweet on an alleged dangerous variant of COVID-19, saying that Singapore reserves the right to invoke his country’s online fake news Act on the Delhi Chief Minister’s assertions.
The Indian envoy to Singapore was also summoned by the country’s foreign ministry after which he clarified that Delhi CM has no competence to pronounce on COVID variants or civil aviation policy.
Later, the Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Arindam Bagchi and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar also commented on the matter. Jaishankar asserted that Kejriwal doesn’t speak for India.
Jaishankar also tweeted tagging foreign minister Vivian Balakrishnan, “Singapore and India have been solid partners in the fight against Covid-19. Appreciate Singapore’s role as a logistics hub and oxygen supplier. Their gesture of deploying military aircraft to help us speaks of our exceptional relationship.”
Earlier, foreign minister Vivian Balakrishnan objected to the Delhi chief minister’s tweet.
“Politicians should stick to facts! There is no “Singapore variant”,” Balakrishnan responded to the tweet, quoting Kejriwal.
Separately, a statement from Singapore’s ministry of foreign affairs had said, “MFA regrets the unfounded assertions made on Facebook and Twitter by chief minister of Delhi, Arvind Kejriwal that a variant of Covid-19 found in Singapore was particularly harmful to children and could cause a third wave of infections in India.”
“MFA is disappointed that a prominent political figure had failed to ascertain the facts before making such claims. MFA met the High Commissioner of India P. Kumaran this morning to express these concerns. As highlighted by MOH in its press release of 18 May 2021, there is no “Singapore variant”. The strain prevalent in many of the Covid-19 cases in recent weeks is the B.1.617.2 variant, which was first detected in India.”
MEA spokesperson Arindam Bagchi informed on Twitter that the Singapore government had called in India’s high commissioner today to convey its strong objection to Delhi CM’s tweet on the ‘Singapore variant’. “High commissioner clarified that Delhi CM had no competence to pronounce on Covid variants or civil aviation policy,” he tweeted.
