Union Minister Smriti Irani, on Wednesday, tested positive for COVID-19. "It is rare for me to search for words while making an announcement; hence here’s me keeping it simple — I’ve tested positive for #COVID and would request those who came in contact with me to get themselves tested at the earliest," Irani said in a tweet. The Union Cabinet Minister for Textiles and Women and Child Development is the latest to join the list of politicians and ministers who have tested positive for COVID-19.
Previously, Home Minister Amit Shah, late President Pranab Mukherjee, Vice President Venkaiah Naidu and others have tested positive for the deadly virus. On October 24, Irani had addressed a couple of election rallies in Bihar. In a stinging attack on the opposition RJD in Bihar, Irani had asserted that "riches acquired through the fodder scam" will find no takers among the self-respecting people of the state. The firebrand BJP leader also invoked the imagery of Laxmi, the goddess of wealth, and remarked that people knew "she comes carrying the lotus and not the lantern", an obvious allusion to the poll symbols of BJP and the RJD respectively.