Attempt to drag me into controversy: Modi rejects campaign to honour him

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday dissed a social media campaign asking people to give him a five-minute standing ovation for his handling of the coronavirus crisis, saying it was mischief to create controversy for him.

In a series of tweets in Hindi, he said maybe it is someone's goodwill, "yet I insist that if you really have so much love and want to honour Modi, then take the responsibility of a poor family, at least as long as the coronavirus crisis exists." "There can be no greater honour for me than this," he said.

Modi said it has been brought to his notice that some people are running this campaign to honour him by giving him a standing ovation for five minutes.

"At first sight, it appears to be mischief to drag Modi in a controversy," he wrote. Modi's tweets were in response to an unsigned message circulating online that asked people to give him a standing ovation for five minutes at 5 pm on Sunday for the work he has been doing for the nation.

Modi interacted with leaders of opposition parties on the prevailing situation in the country over the lockdown announced top check coronavirus. The meeting holds significance amid growing pressure from state government to extend the lockdown. 

The prime minister during the meeting said that the lockdown is unlikely to be eased on April 14, as it’s important to save lives from the coronavirus, a senior politician told journalists. 

As per the Union health ministry's Wednesday morning update, there are 149 deaths and 5,194 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the country even as the country entered its third week of nationwide lockdown.