Team Herald
MARGAO: The Congress has slammed AYUSH Minister Shripad Naik for “embarrassing Goans all over the world” by claiming that Ayurvedic medicines cured Prince Charles of COVID-19.
Terming Shripad’s claim as irresponsible behaviour, Goa Pradesh Congress Committee President (GPCC) Girish Chodankar said that the minister’s behaviour is in keeping with the BJP practice of spreading falsehood and the “dirty tricks” of Prime Minister Narendra Modi of fooling people by spreading tales that have no scientific basis.
Few days ago, Shripad had claimed that Prince Charles, who was infected with COVID-19, was cured of the disease by taking Ayurvedic medicines. This claim was denied by Prince Charles’ office.
Chodankar alleged that Modi is fooling the people with gimmicks like “Taali Bajao” and “Diya Jalao” in a bid to take cheap political mileage in the face of such a daunting challenge. He also accused the prime minister of diverting people’s minds from the economic collapse due to the virus.
Besides, he said, the government failed to put in place a proper disaster management plan. “The health care workers have not even been provided with proper safety and security measures due to which many health workers have also tested positive for the disease,” he alleged.
He said that Shripad’s false claim has severely damaged Ayurveda treatment therapy and dented the reputation of Ayurveda practitioners the world over.
Pointing out that the National Institute of Virology in Pune that is testing thousands of samples for COVID-19 was established by Congress Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, in snide comment, Girish said the Statue of Unity in Gujarat for which Rs 3,000 crore was spent is unfortunately closed for public viewing.
He lamented that even in Goa Chief Minister Dr Pramod Sawant has failed to provide safety gear to health workers and community testing for the virus has also not started and appealed to Goans to take maximum care and avoid going out of their houses.
