The report that four employees of Andhra Pradesh Raj Bhavan, including the chief security officer of Governor Biswabhushan Harichandan, a staff nurse and two other attenders, had tested positive for Coronavirus has created ripples in the state.
No doubt, it is a very serious matter as the health authorities say none of the employees who contracted the virus had any travel history to any part of the state, leave alone country. Moreover, the authorities are now forced to conduct a test on the Governor as well.
All of them have been shifted to the hospitals for treatment. The civic authorities carried out disinfectant operations at Raj Bhavan later in the evening by spraying of sodium hypochlorite through drone as a precautionary measure to prevent spread of corona virus.
But the opposition Telugu Desam Party has used this development as an excuse to make wild allegations against the Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy government.
Former minister and senior TDP leader K S Jawahar blamed it on the appointment of retired judge V Kanagaraj as the state election commissioner by the Jagan Mohan Reddy government.
He alleged that the Raj Bhavan staff had tested positive for Covid-19 because of the swearing-in of Kanagaraj as SEC on April 11, as he had been brought from Chennai in violation of the lockdown norms.
“Because of the irresponsible behaviour of the Jagan government in appointing Kanagaraj that Raj Bhavan staff members had got Coronavirus,” the former minister said and demanded that the government should explain why Kanagaraj was brought from Chennai so hurriedly and sworn in as SEC.
This is not only wild, but also ridiculous. First of all, Kanagaraj was not sworn in at Raj Bhavan. There was no swearing in ceremony at all. He took charge as the SEC in his office and submitted his joining letter to the Governor.
Secondly, the TDP leader is suspecting the health status of SEC himself. If Kanagaraj was responsible for spreading the virus, he too should have got the disease by now and should have been quarantined.
It is better the TDP leaders shut their mouth for some time and let the government handle the Corona issue in its own way.