110 Tablighi congregation attendees traced in Gujarat

Ahmedabad, Apr 05: Gujarat Police have traced seven more persons who had attended the Tablighi Jamaat event in Delhi last month, taking the total number of the attendees who have been identified so far to 110, a top officer said.

Police have also filed cases against 10 such attendees hailing from three districts in the state on the charges of violating the lockdown norms.

"Legal action will also be taken against other such violators who had attended the congregation," said state Director General of Police (DGP) Shivanand Jha.

The seven persons traced on Saturday are from Navsari district.

"Their health check-up is being conducted, after which they will be quarantined," the DGP said.

He said that two of the attendees from Gujarat who had visited the Nizamuddin Markaz had earlier tested positive to coronavirus. One of them had died of the infection.

"We have traced seven more persons in Gujarat who attended the Nizamuddin Markaz, taking the number of such persons identified so far to 110," he said.

On registration of cases, the top cop said the police have registered four FIRs against at least 10 attendees for travelling back to Gujarat in violation of the lockdown norms.

"We are also taking action against other such persons.

So far four FIRs have been registered-- two in Botad, and one each in Bhavnagar and Navsari," Jha said.

The Nizamuddin congregtion has reportedly fuelled the spike in the number of COVID-19 cases across the country.

Over 600 COVID-19 cases were reported among people who participated in Tablighi Jamaat activities from 14 states as on Friday.

Meanwhile, Jha said that police are taking technical help including drones and CCTV cameras to track down violators of the lockdown.

So far, 2,770 persons have been arrested in Gujarat while 1041 FIRs have been registered.

He said at least 234 persons were nabbed on the basis of CCTV camera grabs.

"As many as 144 drones are being used by the police to track down the violators. Apart from drones and CCTVs, automatic number plate recognition system software is also being used to identify vehicles plying frequently on a particular route," Jha added.