Lockdown norms breached : Three men travelled from Delhi to Arunachal, Now in Quarantine

Itanagar

A controversy aroused , when three men travelled from Delhi to Arunachal Pradesh by road and crossed four states,  but now in Quarantine at Hollongi in Arunachal Pradesh.

On April 14, a personal security officer and two drivers accompanied the Lower Subansiri’s superintendent of police, Dr Hemant Tiwari, went to Delhi after his wife developed urgent medical care.

While Tiwari stayed back, the three staff members returned in the wee hours of April 19 at around 2.30 am.

On Sunday, the three of them arrived at the Hollongi check gate after travelling through Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal, and Assam.

The coordination officer for quarantine centre, Dr Gomi Basar, recorded a video with the three of them saying that he had received an ‘order’ from the ‘higher-ups’ to let them go instead of putting them in quarantine.

Basar did not say who the ‘higher-ups’ were.

Capital Complex SP, Tumme Amo, however, said that three have been quarantined.

He informed that the three persons have been cooperative and were, in fact, waiting for health officials for further instruction.

The SP added that there was no magistrate on duty when the three reached the Hollongi check-gate who could have advised further action. The health officials present on the ground also tried to contact their higher authorities but could not reach them.

Regarding the claims made by Basar about pressure being mounted on him from higher authorities to let the three proceed to Ziro, the SP said that he could not contact Basar about the matter.

Amo also said that the police will initiate appropriate actions when an FIR is filed.

As for repeated breach of lockdown measures, the SP said that the police are there to only stop persons from entering and it is upon the health officials to carry out further necessary actions.

Also, citing the earlier incident when the Changlang CJM had reportedly entered the state capital, picked up his family members and returned to Changlang, the SP said that all these matters have been brought to the knowledge of higher authorities and that the chief minister is very concerned over the development and the Health department has also issued standard operating procedures which is being followed by the frontline workers.