FIR in UP against relatives of Tablighi Jamaat head for hiding they visited Markaz

Saharanpur (Uttar Pradesh) [India], April 16 (ANI): An FIR has been filed against four relatives of Tablighi Jamaat chief Maulana Saad in Saharanpur for ignoring the administration's appeal to declare if they had visited Nizamuddin Markaz in Delhi after March 1. The request was made in order to collect their samples for COVID-19 test.
"An FIR was filed against four relatives of the maulana here. This action has been taken as even after repetitive appeals to the people to come out and tell authorities whether they visited Markaz after March 1, these people did not reveal their identity," said Saharanpur District Magistrate Akhilesh Singh.
Two close relatives of the Tablighi Jamaat head tested positive for COVID-19 on Wednesday.
"Two close relatives of Maulana Saad have tested positive for COVID-19. We have shifted them to a level-1 hospital in Fatehpur. The area (Mohalla Mufti) from which they belonged has been identified as a hotspot and exercises of containment are being carried out there," Singh had told reporters here.
The police team conducted surveillance and it was found that the relatives had attended the religious gathering at Markaz, organised by the Tablighi Jamaat, the DM said.
The Delhi Police had earlier issued notices to the Jamaat chief in connection with the gathering organised in Delhi in mid-March. Hundreds of people who attended the gathering and then went to different parts of the country have tested positive for COVID-19, sending the state governments into a tizzy.
Uttar Pradesh, so far, has 773 confirmed cases of COVID-19, as per the Union Health Ministry. (ANI)