Pune: From war of words to fisticuffs, all because of the humble mask

PUNE: It is not unusual to see people breaking into an argument or getting into fisticuffs over wearing of face masks, which essentially prevent the spread of coronavirus.
At the RTO office, a war of words broke out recently when an elderly man told a strapping youth ahead of him in the queue to mask up. The youngster said he had been wearing the face covering for nearly an hour and pulled it down to get some fresh air.
When the elderly man tried to tell him that he should wear mask for his own safety, the youngster turned around and abused him roundly.When a couple of others tried to calm him down, he announced that he would not wear mask at all.
Since the pandemic started, and the government authorities started mandating face covering, masks have become the new flashpoint, triggering arguments and confrontations that have sometimes resulted in police complaints, and even breakups.
At a few housing societies, wearing of face masks has raised a storm in a teacup at the annual general body meetings, with some members objecting to security guards ticking them off for not wearing face covering.
Kamakshi Agarwal, a resident of Lulla Nagar, said that she broke up with her close friend for over 15 years over the issue of wearing masks. “On our school friends’ group on social media, there was a discussion on the importance of wearing masks in the wake of rising cases and I had said that precaution was better than cure. But my friend argued that wearing of masks was not a solution since many people were getting infected anyway. The argument continued for a while following which she told me bluntly that she was not interested in speaking to me. She then blocked my phone number.”
At restaurants, too, the issue of not wearing masks has often led to quarrels.
Prabhakar Reddy, a staff member at a popular restaurant on F C Road, said, "Patrons often take umbrage if they are told to wear the mask properly. A patron told one of our staff members that had no right to tell him to mask up since he was more educated than him."
A conductor at a PMPML bus on the Hadapsar route recently had an argument with a youngster who refused to wear mask because he was sitting alone on a two-seater. "I told the youngster that he was coughing and there were many passengers on the bus. Initially, he ignored my request. When I told him the second time, he refused to cover his face. I then asked him to get down from the bus for not following the rules," the conductor said.
The issue of wearing masks has even ruined relationships. Shweta Sinha, a teacher at a CBSE school in Aundh, recalled two brothers residing in her building coming to blows over wearing of face masks.
"Both of them threatened to report to the police against each other. While they were coming down the staircase, they even exchanged a couple of blows. Since then the brothers have not met each other for over a year now."