Coronavirus / Some people pushing secular-communal narrative: Javadekar on COVID-19 fight

New Delhi: At a time when the coronavirus cases in the country reached 17,000-mark, Union Minister Prakash Javadekar on Monday said that a secular-communal narrative is being deliberately pushed by certain people in the battle against the coronavirus. He also said that everybody must cooperate in the spirit of one people, one India.

“Everybody must cooperate in dealing with those who are asked to take tests or be quarantined or be admitted to hospital if found positive. Everybody must cooperate in the spirit of one people, one India,” Javadekar said.

Saying that the Central government is against fake news of all kinds, the Union Minister accused the critics of peddling utter falsehoods and not even offering apology when exposed.

Giving the examples of attacks on health workers, the minister lamented that these incidents are not discussed as they should be. “The coronavirus pandemic does not discriminate along religious, caste or creed divides, and all have to fight it unitedly,” he asserted.

“India is one country and one people. The government does not discriminate. The campaign against COVID-19 is best example of where health workers despite resistance in several cases have been going from door to door to find out patients,” he said.

He added that some people in the society are deliberately pushing this secular-communal narrative. Targeting a section of critics, the minister said a lawyer-activist claimed that a mother drowned her five children due to hunger the family suffered during the ongoing lockdown.

“It, however, turned out that the incident was triggered by a scuffle between the woman and her husband, and the family had no shortage of food,” he said.