Kolkata: A suspected COVID-19 patient, his pregnant wife and their child were allegedly assaulted Wednesday by their neighbours at Patuli locality in the southern part of this city. This prompted the West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee to ask people to fight the disease and not those who are infected. The ongoing combat against the pandemic is the ‘fight for survival’, Mamata Banerjee said. The chief minister asserted that people should unitedly stand by the patients and help them recover quickly.
Banerjee’s comments followed the allegations by an IT professional. He alleged that he, his three-year-old son and his wife who is three months’ pregnant were assaulted physically by their neighbours, Tuesday afternoon. He said that the assault happened even though they are adhering to the COVID-19 quarantine protocol. He claimed that the neighbours pushed his wife and beat him with shoes as they are against their stay at their home.
The neighbours, however, rubbished the allegations and have accused the man and his family members of violating the home isolation protocol related to COVID-19.
The man had been tested last week and the results are awaited. Tests were conducted on his wife and son as well and both had tested negative.
The man had mailed his complaint to Patuli police station Tuesday night when the personnel on duty asked his wife to do so when she went there. An investigation has been initiated into the case after the complaint was lodged, police said Wednesday.
More reports of attacks on frontline warriors and patients have been surfacing in West Bengal from time to time.
“We have to keep this in mind that our fight is against the disease and not against those who have been infected by it. There are instances when people do not want to allow a person infected with the disease to enter their locality. I appeal to them not to do so,” Banerjee said.
“We must not forget that anybody can be infected by the disease any moment. So we must unitedly fight against it. It’s our duty to treat the patient and we will try to help them in the best possible way. This fight is for survival,” Banerjee added.
The West Bengal chief minister thanked doctors, nurses, health workers and the police for playing an important role in fighting novel coronavirus. Around 35 WBCS officials and 500 policemen have been infected by the disease, she said.
“There will be times when we will have to face cyclones like Amphan, Aila, Fani or have to stand against dengue or COVID-19. We all have to stand against them unitedly, loving each other,” Banerjee added.
