Covid19: Modi Happy To See huge Crowd Amid Second Wave

[Anta Assamey]

As India reported 2.34 lakh new Covid cases today, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who campaigned in Bengal, stunned and grabbed all the attention of everyone after he praised the large crowd for coming to his rally in Asansol. The country has active cases number rose to an all-time high of 16.8 lakh.

“Last time I came to seek votes for Union Minister Babul Supriyo (Asansol MP), it is the first time I came for myself. But the crowd was only a quarter of this size. But today, we have a huge crowd, showcasing your power. The next step is more important – go and vote and take others also,” Prime Minister Modi said.

During the second wave, words like these are indeed shocking. As Modi lauded the crowd, the opposition was quick to question the PM’s continued active involvement in election rallies. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi tweeted in Hindi: “This is also the first time when such huge crowds of sick people and a record number of deaths have been seen.”

And because Modi was busy rallying in Bengal, Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray was unable to speak to the Prime Minister. Hew wanted to discuss the supply of oxygen but could not reach him. Instead, his concerns were addressed by Union Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan. After the incident, Congress posted a video on Twitter criticising the Prime Minister.

Talking about the vast crowd, there were no social distancing and many people failed to don face masks. It is frightening to see such a sight amid aggressive variants of the virus in circulation.