Govt seals mosque where 3 COVID-19 positive persons stayed

The Assam government has sealed a mosque in Guwahati where three persons who later tested positive for COVID-19 had stayed to attend a religious congregation last month, Health Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said on Friday.

Two of them had returned to Assam after attending a Tablighi Jamaat congregation in Delhi's Nizamuddin area. The third stayed with them at the Athgaon Kabarsthan Masjid and accompanied one of them to Dhubri, Sharma said at a press conference here.

At least 100 people attended the gathering at the mosque on March 12 and the organisers have so far given the names of 58 people and they have been quarantined, he said.

"The fact that a congregation was held here was brought to our notice much later and we have asked the organisers to give a list of all people who attended it, he said.

The masjid has been sealed and declared a containment zone with no entry or exit allowed. The administration will provide essential items to the caretaker and other functionaries of the mosque staying inside, he added.

The government is considering to lodge an FIR against one of the three persons, the first COVID-19 case in Assam, as he hid the fact that he attended the Jamaat event.

"He was asked by doctors in three hospitals where he had gone for treatment on feeling unwell,whether he had attended the event in Nizamuddin or not but he denied and as a result now all these doctors have been quarantined, Sarma said.

"We are facing a shortage of doctors in these hospitals and we are considering to file an FIR against him, he added.

Assam reported the first COVID-19 death on Friday at Silchar Medical College Hospital. He was later buried as per the protocol near his home in Hailakandi in the presence of district officials.

His family members are home quarantine, the minister said.

The state has reported 29 cases of coronavirus.