Mumbai, March 30 The opposition Bharatiya Janata Party in Maharashtra faced flak when one of its leaders made a statement suggesting that if anyone criticised Prime Minister Narendra Modi, then they should face the consequences of COVID-19.
State BJP spokesperson Avadhut Wagh said in what has been described as an "insensitive" comment, tweeted that those who unnecessarily target Modi must be prepared to face the consequences, though the situation confronting COVID-19 patients in Islampur, Sangli was bad.
Noted for similar controversial remarks in the past, Wagh's tweet was in response to state Nationalist Congress Party President and Irrigation Minister Jayant Patil's concerns over the 25 COVID-19 patients found in his constituency, Islampur in Sangli district.
In a series of tweets in the past few days, Patil had objected to the manner in which Modi had announced the lockdown on the midnight of March 25, barely three hours after his address to the nation on March 24.
"Considering the outbreak of the coronavirus worldwide, the country's lockdown should have been declared in the morning instead of 8 pm, like demonetisation. There was a lack of clarity in the PM's speech regarding the necessities of life. Due to inadequate information there has been chaos in the country. But there is no reason for the people of Maharashtra to panic," Patil said.
State NCP spokesperson Maharest Tapase slammed Wagh for the insensitive comments.
On Monday, Maharashtra recorded 9 deaths with another 215 COVID-19 patients, the highest in the country.
( With inputs from IANS )