Covid spread because of Namaste Trump programme: MVA After PM Modi's Parliament speech

Covid-19 spread in India because Prime Minister Narendra Modi went ahead with the Namaste Trump programme, turning down Maharashtra's request to shut down international flights, the Maha Vikas Aghadi has alleged.

"The Maharashtra government stood with labourers and the poor. The Centre announced a lockdown without thinking how it would impact people... When we asked the Centre to shut down international flights, it refused. The pandemic spread through the Namaste Trump programme, where people from throughout the world were invited to Ahmedabad," Maharashtra skill development minister Nawab Malik said in a sharp rebuttal to Modi's allegations in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday that 'Congress governments and Congress leaders were responsible' for spread of the pandemic.

Though Modi limited his attack to Congress, its larger allies in MVA joined hands with Congress to project Modi's allegation as an affront on Maharashtra's pride. Senior NCP leader Supriya Sule said in New Delhi, "I have been hurt by the PM's statements. The state has given 18 MPs to BJP and yet it has been called a super spreader. Why is the state being defamed in such a manner?" Sule said the Centre provided trains to states to send home migrant labourers home. "The state government does not run trains; it is the Railways under the central government that does it. Railway figures show that in Gujarat 1,033 train services were used to send back migrants, while Maharashtra was given 817 trains," Sule said.


Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut said that while the state government advocated caution, BJP encouraged migrants to leave the city. "When Sonu Sood was taking migrants back home, we advised him to wait for a while. However, who encouraged him and even had him felicitated by the Maharashtra governor?"

Maharashtra Congress chief Nana Patole echoed Sule. "The state of Maharashtra has been insulted by such comments by the prime minister. Congress workers would protest outside BJP offices tomorrow unless the BJP or the PM apologises for his remarks."

The BJP, however, claimed MVA was wrongly trying to claim Modi had cast aspersions on the state. "The prime minister has not said anything disparaging about the state. He has just spoken about the role of the Congress. The Centre helped every state during Covid-19 by providing masks, free vaccines, and medicines. The Maharashtra government has not done anything. It should bring out a white paper on what it did during Covid-19," said BJP state chief Chandrakant Patil.