BJP gathering breaks social distancing rules in Madhya Pradesh again

No face masks and zero care for social distancing seemed the thumb rule a ruling BJP gathering that was attended by Madhya Pradesh cabinet minister Govind Singh Rajput.
For representational purposes (File Photo | EPS)
For representational purposes (File Photo | EPS)

BHOPAL: No face masks and zero care for social distancing seemed the thumb rule a ruling BJP gathering that was attended by Madhya Pradesh cabinet minister Govind Singh Rajput in Rahatgarh town of Sagar district on Saturday.

Interestingly, it was only hours after BJP state vice president and former MLA Sudarshan Gupta and supporters were booked in Indore for violating social distancing norms during a program held to mark union agriculture minister Narendra Singh Tomar’s birthday celebrations that Govind Singh Rajput was caught on camera in Sagar district in identical fashion.

Hardly a few in the large gathering at Rahatgarh were seen wearing face masks, as the 48-year-old MP minister addressed a large gathering of BJP leaders and workers, including Sagar district BJP president Gaurav Sirothia.

Rajput, who was also a minister in the erstwhile Congress government led by Kamal Nath, was among the 22 Jyotirditya Scindia loyalists who quit and ended the Congress regime in the state.

Rahatgarh town is considered the nucleus of Surkhi assembly seat of Sagar district, which was won by Rajput as Congress candidate in 2018 assembly polls. With 24 bulk assembly by-polls, including Surkhi seat, likely to be held in the coming months, Rajput has already started working aggressively for retaining the seat, this time as BJP man.

Reacting to social distancing norms going for a toss at the BJP gathering graced by Rajput, the state Congress leader Narendra Saluja (also ex-CM Kamal Nath’s media coordinator) tweeted “when BJP state vice president Sudarshan Gupta can be booked for violating social distancing norms in Indore, why has the minister Govind Singh Rajput not been booked for the same act in Sagar district.” 

Importantly, MP is among the top ten districts when it comes to COVID-19 cases, with over 10,600 positive cases and 447 deaths.

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