Spike in Covid-19 not linked with elections, asserts Home Minister Amit Shah

April 18: It is not right to link coronavirus surge in the country with Assembly elections. This was stated by Union Home Minister Amit Shah in an interview. At a time when social media is replete with memes wherein elections were held directly responsible for the surge in COVID-19 cases, the statement of the Home Minister came as a surprise.

Amit Shah, however, cited logic behind his statement. He said, “Is there an election in Maharashtra? It has 60,000 cases, while here in poll bound West Bengal, it is 4000. How do you explain that?” The Home Minister also added that the states that did not have any elections also witnessed a surge in the number of coronavirus cases.

He said, “Covid-19 surge in the country is mainly because of virus mutants. Many countries are also witnessing this surge. Linking elections with surge in Covid-19 is still a premature statement.” Shah said that a full-fledged fight was on and that he was confident of overcoming the pandemic. He also added that the situation, as of now, does not warrant a “lockdown in a hurry.”