Indian Muslim body issues fatwa to boycott Chinese goods

Bengaluru, Apr 8: In a strong show of support, Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa stood behind the minorities in the state and said no one should target the Muslim community over the coronavirus crisis and the Tablighi Jamaat.

He said those communalising the issue will be dealt with strictly.

BS Yediyurappa was speaking to a regional media channel when he said "Nobody should speak a word against Muslims. This is a warning. If anyone blames the entire Muslim community for some isolated incident, I'll take action against them also without a second thought. Will not allow that to happen."

Since then, many have welcomed the CM's remarks including the opposition.

Former Karnataka Congress president Dinesh Gundu Rao tweeted and said that other BJP leaders should follow the Karnataka CM and that it's a welcome step.

Congress president DK Shivakumar too said he agrees with the chief minister and that no one should target one community. "The CM should also act strictly against people posting communal remarks on social media and issue an order."

Earlier, Karnataka CM BS Yediyurappa held a meeting with minority opposition MLAs and MLCs and urged them to pass the message within the community asking those who had attended the Delhi Nizamuddin Markaz event to come and get tested for Covid-19.

Bengaluru, Mar 14: Amid coronavirus threat, Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa has ordered shutting down for a week of all places/activities where people gather in large number including swimming pools, shopping malls, schools, colleges, cinema halls etc, state Health Minister B Sriramulu said.

This comes after Yediyurappa chaired an emergency meeting with ministers and senior officials on Friday to discuss the situation.

Earlier, schools in the state had announced early summer vacation for their students this academic year as a precautionary measure. Other public places have been shut down in the state amid the Covid-19 scare.

The shut down in Karnataka comes after various other state governments ordered similar steps. Uttar Pradesh, Kerala, Jammu and Kashmir etc. are some of the states where governments have ordered shut down as a precautionary measure to contain the spread of the deadly coronavirus.

The central government has also taken several steps to contain the virus, including suspension of all visas to India till April 15. Till date, India has reported two deaths and 82 confirmed cases of the deadly coronavirus.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has declared the coronavirus outbreak a pandemic. The virus, which originated in the Chinese city of Wuhan last year has spread to more than 100 countries worldwide, infecting over 1,30,000 people.