Daijiworld Media Network - Bengaluru (SHP)
Bengaluru, May 25: After flying from Delhi to Bengaluru on Monday, May 25, union minister and BJP MP D V Sadananda Gowda was allowed to skip institutional quarantine in a hotel and opt for home quarantine.
Soon after the minister's flight landed, he took off in his private car. Meanwhile, his assistant told reporters that Gowda had tested negative for the virus and thereby was allowed to do home quarantine.
Speaking to the media later, Gowda maintained that the quarantine guidelines were exempted for him as he is a minister, whereas the rules are applicable to other citizens.
“Being a minister, I am exempted by the state government and the central government so I do not see the issue,” he said, adding that he also has the government’s contract-tracing app Aarogya Setu on his phone.
Gowda happens to head the Centre’s pharmaceutical department, which makes him responsible to ensure smooth flow of medicines. “If I do not supply medicines, then the cases will double,” Gowda said, clarifying his stance.
He also compared the situation to quarantine of doctors fighting coronavirus on the frontlines. "To see the movement of medicines throughout the country is my responsibility. If doctors are quarantined, if people who supply medicines are quarantined, how will we beat coronavirus," he said.
Following the resumption of domestic air travel, the Karnataka government mandated seven days of institutional quarantine and seven days of home quarantine for all domestic air passengers. The rule is applicable to all those who arrive from high-risk states like Maharashtra, Delhi, Gujarat and Tamil Nadu.
However, the rules are relaxed for those flying for emergency reasons, including a special case for businessmen coming for urgent work.
The guidelines state that the businessmen are allowed to avoid institutional quarantine if they bring a negative test report from a lab accredited by the Indian Council of Medical Research. The test report will be considered valid only when it has been conducted within two days of travel. In case the stay is longer than five days, the concerned individual will have to get examined again.
The guidelines do not specify if the exemptions apply to ministers. According to sources, several union ministers got tested for the novel coronavirus on Sunday before flight services were to resume.