As Delhi now touches new peaks of rising Covid-19 cases each day, so does the confusion on new protocols and orders, followed by roll backs being issued regularly. On Tuesday June 23, Delhi’s  Deputy CM Manish Sisodia announced that he is writing to Lt Governor Anil Baijal to withdraw his latest order that made it mandatory for those who test positive for Covid-19 to go to a government-run quarantine centre for ‘clinical assessment’.

“Why should one go to a quarantine centre for checkup? Has he made any mistake? At a time when the government should help him, we are giving him punishment of standing in long queues,” said Sisodia via an online press conference.

This new order said Deputy CM Manish Sisodia has increased the workload on an already taxed system. He said it also put additional pressure on the city’s ambulance system which is needed to prioritise taking unwell patients to hospital, but now will also be needed to take asymptomatic people to the centers for assessment. Sisodia has asked the Lt Governor to convene a meeting of the State Disaster Management Authority (SDMA) and re-implement the Delhi Government’s original plans of sending medical teams home to assess conditions of patients. 

“I have written a letter to LG Sahab urging to call a meeting of SDMA immediately to implement the old system of sending ‘medical teams at home’ instead of this system.

कोरोना के सभी नए मरीज़ों को कोरंटीन सेंटर जाकर जाँच कराने के आदेश ने लोगों के लिए मुसीबत खड़ी कर दो है.

मैंने एलजीसाहब को पत्र लिखकर इस व्यवस्था की जगह ‘घर पर ही मेडिकल टीम भेजने’ की पुरानी व्यवस्था लागू कराने के लिए तुरंत SDMA की मीटिंग बुलाने का आग्रह किया है. pic.twitter.com/SBEWGcR0YK

— Manish Sisodia (@msisodia) June 23, 2020

The Lt Governor’s order, said Sisodia, also adds a great deal of stress on the citizen, who will now have to go and stand in crowded lines for hours to get tested. The person, even if asymptomatic, can also put others at risk, reminded Sisodia.  “People are facing problems. What wrong have they done? They are scared of going to the centres and fear getting sicker, they are tired. But  if they do not go to these centres, they get calls from police and district administration,” he said.

So far, home isolation has been working well, especially for asymptomatic patients. Atishi, a senior leader of the Aam Aadmi Party, and the party spokesman Akshay Mhatre, both tested positive for Covid-19 and have been under home isolation. They wrote an opinion piece in The Hindustan Times to share their personal experience with home isolation and said it benefited their health and well-being. Once they tested positive the two were contacted in their respective residences by a “government telemedicine service that offered medical advice.” They were also visited by an ASHA health worker who confirmed they had mild symptoms and then she “pasted a sticker next to our main doors, giving neighbours fair warning.” 

They write that while under home isolation their health was monitored daily via the state government’s tele-monitoring service. “An emergency phone number was also given to us to be called if our symptoms were to escalate. An ambulance would take us to a hospital if we were to report any escalation in symptoms,” they wrote. Things were smooth till the Lt Governor’s order ending home isolation, which was then rolled back soon enough. 

“One of the lessons of governance the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has learnt is — do not fix something that is not broken.The thought of being dragged into a railway coach parked at the Anand Vihar station upon testing positive would have driven away people from voluntarily coming forward to test themselves. And if asymptomatic and mildly symptomatic patients refuse testing and carry on with their lives, they would have ended up infecting others,” wrote the AAP leaders.

A point that Sisodia also put in his official statement, “After Lt Governor ordered that every #COVID positive patient is required to visit a quarantine centre for clinical assessment, a lot of pressure is being built on people. So, I have written a letter to LG requesting him to withdraw this order. The former system was better, wherein govt’s team used to visit patients’ residence for clinical assessment.”

According to the opinion written by Atishi, “Data on Delhi’s home isolation programme shows why it is highly recommended around the world. Only 6% of all positive patients under home isolation have been required to be shifted to a hospital or quarantine facility during their home isolation period. Of more than 27,000 patients who have been under home isolation thus far, only 1,618 reported a deterioration in their symptoms and had to be shifted to hospitals.”

Earlier the Delhi  government had announced that testing for Covid-19 had been tripled to around 18,000 tests each day. It was also announced that the Delhi government will loan Pulse Oximeters to those under home isolation to keep a check on the oxygen levels in their body. 

Delhi’s Covid-19 situation is now being monitored by Union Home Minister Amit Shah who has chaired a number of meetings in the past few days. As reported across the media, these meetings have been attended by Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal, deputy CM Manish Sisodia, lieutenant governor Anil Baijal, Union health minister Harsh Vardhan and other senior officials to discuss the action plan. A committee of experts being consulted includes: AIIMS director Dr Randeep Guleria, Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) director general Dr Balram Bhargava and Niti Aayog member Dr VK Paul. 

According to an HT report apart from protocols and strategies such as  better containment of areas, a wider range of contact tracing, rapid antibody testing, the Delhi Police has also empowered to “enforce social distancing norms,” and impose fines on those people violating them or not wearing face masks.

The Delhi government has to put in place a revised  strategy in place by June 26. The Union govt committee said that there should be “a 100% survey of all containment zones by June 30, and by July 6, there should be an extensive survey of the entire Capital.” The serological survey will be conducted between June 27 and July 10.

According to official data Delhi had recorded more than  62,655 positive cases with 2,909 added in a single day on June 22. Around 23,820 cases remain active, the city has also recorded around 2,233 deaths at last count.

Delhi’s health minister Satyendra Jain remains under treatment for Covid-19 at a private hospital. 

Related:

No plans for another lockdown: Delhi CM

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Activist Gautam Navlakha,  currently lodged in an overcrowded and unhygienic quarantine facility that runs from a school in Pune has raised serious concerns about a Covid-19 threat. He had raised the issue at the time of his arrest too. Gautam Navlakha is among those accused of allegedly making  provocative speeches at the Elgar Parishad conclave held december 2017, in Pune. The next day violence had erupted at the Bhima-Koregaon war memorial.  He was booked under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, or UAPA  The case is under the  National Investigation Agency.

Navlakha’s partner, Sahba Husain has shared their recent conversation where the activist described the conditions at the quarantine facility he was housed at. Sahba Husain narrated the conversation to their common friend Anand Patwardhan, who then shared it in a  Facebook post.

The post details the horrific conditions that the activists, and 349 other inmates are living under, even as the Covid-19 pandemic is at its worst in Maharashtra. According to Navlakha the facility runs from a school building and  the 350 adults are divided into six class rooms. The room that Navlakha is in has 35 other inmates, and more are forced to sleep in the corridors due to the overcrowding. All the inmates have to share three toilets, seven urinals and have to bathe in a common space.

Here is what Patwardhan posted online: 

***************************************************************************

“A very worrying letter from Gautam’s partner Sahba. Remember that Maharashtra is the epicenter of the Covid epidemic.

Dear Anand

Gautam called me yesterday after a gap of 15 days. All I knew until then was that he was sent to a quarantine facility in Taloja on 26th May after he was suddenly shifted from Tihar jail in Delhi to Bombay. This quarantine facility runs from a school building in Taloja where new inmates are brought before being shifted to jail.

Gautam mentioned to me on the phone some of the horrific details that I am sharing with you.

He said that there are 350 inmates crowded into six classrooms in the building with Gautam having to share the room with 35 other inmates, many others sleeping in the corridors and passages. There are only 3 toilets, 7 urinals and a common bating space without a bucket or a mug. He said that the congestion is such that apart from the fear of Covid-19, inmates are prone to skin infections too.

He also said that there is no fresh air as they are mostly locked in with no place to walk or exercise, although he manages to do his yoga as other inmates help to clear some space for him. He said he has lost 2 kg in these three weeks of prolonged quarantine and was wondering how long the authorities would keep him and the other inmates in such inhuman conditions. Taloja jail at present does not seem to have space for new prisoners such as him. Given these circumstances it worries me to think about the extreme health risk that he and other inmates are being exposed to on a daily basis.

He also mentioned how all of them are completely cut off from the outside world as there is no news flowing in or out of this quarantine facility. He wondered about what could be going on in the world outside!

I must say I am truly aghast with what he shared with me yesterday.

Despite these deplorable conditions that he described to me, he sounded well and said that he is trying his best to manage and not wilt under the sheer burden of this ordeal.

I thought I must share this with you since you have often been asking me about his well being . His lawyers and I are trying to see what can be done, although I do believe that it is important for us outside to raise our voice against this kind of inhuman treatment of a political prisoner like Gautam – and in fact all the other BK 11 currently in jail.

You must have also heard regarding Varvara Rao’s terrible and deteriorating health condition inside the jail.

The concerned authorities urgently need to look into this and make necessary amends.

Well, thanks for calling me earlier today.

Salaam,

Sahba ”
**************************************************************************

According to news reports, Navlakha had been taken to Pune from Delhi’s Tihar jail, and sent to the quarantine facility. Prisoners were to be quarantined before they were shifted to the Taloja central jail. That was three weeks ago.

In April, Gautam Navlakha had written a note after his and scholar activist Anand Teltumbde’s bail applications had been rejected by the Supreme Court. The court had given them a week to surrender to the National Investigation Agency (NIA), which they had. Even at that time he had then written a note and expressed his concerns about the Covid-19 pandemic. That note too had been widely reported. A crucial excerpt:

“The Indian Prime Minister has likened the challenge posed by Covid19 pandemic to a state of “national emergency”. Meanwhile the apex court itself recently intervened in the matter of jail conditions, and issued guidelines to the authorities regarding the overcrowding of jail inmates and the threat posed to the prisoners and detenues, jail staff and other personnel assigned jail duties. This concern remains although no case of Covid19 infection has come from any jail so far, somewhat reassuring for me. However, I am affected by the fear that my near and dear ones harbour about my captivity amidst Covid19.

I cannot help but feel disappointed that the terse order of the Supreme Court on 8th April had no reference to the Covid19 pandemic, which has overtaken the world, including all of us in India. 

However, I can now begin to face the actual legal process, which accompanies cases where provisions of Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act are invoked. Such Acts turn the normal jurisprudence upside down. No longer is it the axiom that ‘a person is innocent unless proven guilty’. In fact, under such Acts, ‘an accused is guilty unless proven innocent’.”

Related:

Gautam Navlakhas call to freedom
SC orders Teltumbde, Navlakha to surrender in one week
Bhima Koregaon case: Civil society members pen open letter

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Member of Parliament, All India Majlis-e-Ittehad-ul-Muslimeen (AIMIM) leader and Asaduddin Owaisi, may be the only senior politician who has personally written to the Union Government to seek answers on why members of the Tablighi Jamaat are still being confined in Delhi’s quarantine centres even though they have tested negative for Cronavirus.

Wrote to @AmitShah @kishanreddybjp & Telangana Chief Secy Somesh Kumar sahab requesting discharge & travel pass for 38 persons from Telangana who are still in Delhi’s quarantine centres despite completing their quarantine period & all their tests being negative pic.twitter.com/RBEN1srkcd

— Asaduddin Owaisi (@asadowaisi) May 2, 2020

Owaisi, has written to seek the return of 38 TJ members who hail from Telangana and are now stuck in Delhi, it also brings into focus the way Delhi administration, and even the Union government has all but forgotten that the quarantine period has passed. Most of them have been in quarantine since March 31, it is now May 6. They have spent more than twice the time needed in isolation. Even those who have tested negative are still in confinement. It is not yet known if those who had recovered from Covid-19, and even donated plasma to help others heal, have been sent back to the quarantine facility again.

The TJ members, including women members have been sending messages highlighting the appalling conditions they are being kept under at the quarantine centres. They have complained about the lack of hygiene, privacy as well as inadequate and ill-timed food. Most of them are fasting for the month of Ramzaan and need nourishment and ablution facilities on time. 

Asaduddin Owaisi has also asked: “Why’re people from Markaz not being discharged despite all negative tests & them completing over TWICE the required quarantine period? Why’s Delhi govt not permitting their discharge? They’ve been there since 31 March, they should be discharged immediately.”

Why’re people from Markaz not being discharged despite all negative tests & them completing over TWICE the required quarantine period? Why’s Delhi govt not permitting their discharge? They’ve been there since 31 March, they should be discharged immediately https://t.co/sQpQqcVlDI

— Asaduddin Owaisi (@asadowaisi) May 4, 2020

Over 3000 people, who had attended the Jamaat’s annual meeting at the Markaz at Nizamuddin had been moved to different quarantine centres at Narela, Bakkarwala, Mandoli, Sultanpuri, Dwarka and Badarpur. According to a news report in the Hindustan Times, the Delhi government has to wait for instructions from the Union ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) before they take a decision on the release of the Jamaat members. 

It is important to note that the quarantine facilities are run by Delhi Government, who can probably take the decision to discharge those who have tested negative, and completed the required quarantine time. It is not known if the Delhi government has been seeking permission from MHA for discharging each person who tests negative, or is it only in the case of members of the Tablighi Jamaat that they are being extra cautious.

The HT quotes senior Delhi government officials who admitted that while all the TJ members tested negative and have completed at least 28 days in quarantine, it is the lack of “clear guidelines from the Centre have delayed their release.” This includes  2,446 people from all across India, including 191 from Delhi. According to the newsport, the Delhi government’s health department requested the MHA on May 3 to “issue directions/protocol immediately for the release of these people.” 

“We have informed the MHA that it is becoming difficult to explain the reasons for their extended stay to these people, especially during Ramzan,” the news report quotes a senior Delhi government official, who requested anonymity. The city has reported over 5100 Covid-19 cases till now. 

The Delhi government was the first to give separate statistics for the Covid-19 cases reported amongst the Jamaat members. This had led to mass targetting and vilification of the entire Muslim community in the city and across India. They soon stopped that and started listing cases connected to the Markaz as those under “special operations”. 

According to the new report a doctor has confirmed that: “All the patients who were brought to the hospital from the Nizamuddin markaz have already been discharged after they tested negative twice consecutively. They have been sent to government facilities for a 14-day quarantine, which people who have recovered usually undergo at their homes. Many of them have also agreed to become plasma donors.” 

The plasma donation had created a wave of positivity, and had helped stop the abuse thrown at the TJ members for a few days. But that was short lived and the social boycott of Muslims, especially those from the economically weaker sections resumed in the city and elsewhere.

The conditions at the camps were reported to be so bad that two diabetic inmates died in April. Mohamed Mustafa (60) died on April 22 while Haji Rizwan, died about ten days earlier. Both of them had come from Tamil Nadu and died due to “denial of diabetic medicines and erratic food supply.” Taking note of this, Delhi Minorities Commission Chairman Dr Zafarul-Islam Khan and Member Kartar Singh Kochharhad had written  to Lt. Governor Delhi  Anil Baijal, and Chief Minister of Delhi, Arvind Kejriwal, and apprised them of the appalling conditions prevailing in the  Covid19 quarantine camps in Delhi. These conditions and the “callous and uncooperative nature of officers and doctors manning and supervising these camps and erratic supply of food at these facilities” are to be blamed for the  deaths of two inmates, stated the DMC letter.

As for holding the organisers of the Markaz event responsible, it has been reported that Tablighi Jamaat chief Maulana Saad’s son has been questioned by Delhi Police’s Crime Branch recently. According to a Hindustan report he was questioned about the whereabouts of 20 employees of the Markaz who are said to be missing. The report added that Saad’s son was also told to get his father tested again for coronavirus. Saad himself had sent messages a while ago that he had undergone the 14-day quarantine and was disease free. It is not known if Saad, or his son, have appealed to the government to allow their members who have tested negative for Coronavirus to go home, so they spend a peaceful Ramzaan with their families.

Related:
 

Covid19: Recovered Tablighi Jamaat members will donate blood so plasma therapy can help others
Jailed and quarantined followers abandoned by Tablighi Jamaat chief

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