Congress' Nana Patole blames 'Nigerian' Cheetahs for lumpy virus in India; BJP demands Nobel Prize for ‘research’

In a bizarre statement, Maharashtra Congress president Nana Patole has sought to link the spread of lumpy virus disease among cattle in India to the cheetahs brought from Namibia. Strangely he also said that the Cheetahs were brought from 'Nigeria'. He alleged that the Centre 'deliberately' brought "cheetahs from Nigeria" to spread Lumpy Skin Disease (LSD) to take revenge from farmers for rolling back the farm laws.

Last month, India brought Cheetahs from the Namibia to introduce into Madhya Pradesh’s Kuno National Park. Incidentally, the lumpy skin disease has severely affected dairy farmers in India from last couple of months.

Patole alleged that, for the first time, to destroy farmers, diseases like the lumpy virus were being brought to India.


"This lumpy virus has been prevailing in Nigeria for a long time and the Cheetahs have also been brought from there. The central government has deliberately done this for the losses of farmers. There was an event on this on Prime Minister Narendra Modi's birthday (September 17)," said the Maharashtra Congress chief.


Reacting to this, Union Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia replied on Twitter: “cheetahs were brought to India from Namibia, and not Nigeria" and tagged Patole.

BJP MLA Ram Kadam said, the Congress party should be awarded the Nobel Prize for connecting the Lumpy skin disease spread with the arrival of Cheetahs in the country.


Will poverty, unemployment, inflation end by bringing cheetahs to India and can farmers and the country's borders be secure by bringing these cheetahs, Patole further questioned.

“But by making this (bringing cheetahs to India) an event and bringing foreign disease to the country…never before cows and oxen have died due to such disease. For the first time, to destroy the farmers, such diseases are being brought to India,” Patole alleged.

Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Monday also took a potshot on Congress leader Nana Patole over his 'Cheetah' remark and said that Patole talks ignorantly for media attention.

"Nana Patole does not even know where the Cheetahs were brought from. He has a hobby of talking without knowledge, as he knows that it will run in the media. Otherwise, he won't be seen altogether," Fadnavis said.