Haryanan Home Minister Anil Vij on Wednesday said that 503 people, including 72 foreigners, who attended the Tabligh-e-Jamaat congregation in Delhi earlier this month have been traced in the State.
Also, the Health Minister, Vij said that health teams are at their job after Haryana police traced the congregation attendees in various districts including Gurgaon and Ambala.
On the purpose of this group entering Haryana, the Minister said that after attending the congregation they are assigned duties and sent to different places across India to preach. "They stay in mosques, go to people's homes and hold meetings."
"503 of them came to Haryana and those include 72 foreigners. Among those, who are to be quarantined or isolated is being decided by the health teams," he said
The Minister said in Ambala Cantonment, the seat he represents in the Assembly, samples of four members of this group, who are being treated as symptomatic, have been sent for testing while 40 others in Ambala have been quarantined. "Most of the 503 people came from Tamil Nadu. Among foreigners, some are from Nepal," Vij said.
"Medical examination of all the 503 Tabligh-e-Jamaat congregation attendees traced in the State will be conducted. Those who show symptoms will be admitted to hospitals, kept in isolation wards and their samples tested. All those who could have come into contact with them will be quarantined," the minister said.
He, however, said that it has not been established yet how many have come in their contact. About reports that the group could have entered Haryana after the lockdown was imposed, Vij replied, "Then action will be taken according to law."
The Tabligh-e-Jamaat's Markaz in Nizamuddin West has emerged as a hotspot of coronavirus, following which a major area has been sealed and an FIR lodged against its cleric for violating Government orders.