NEW DELHI: While several members of Congress expressed their apprehensions about the approval process for the Indian-made vaccine against Covid-19, BJP criticized the opposition party, and its president JP Nadda urged Congress to stop playing with life of people and cause panic by “wild theories”.
“Time and time again we have seen that whenever India achieves something commendable, which will advance the public good, Congress comes up with wild theories to oppose and ridicule the achievements. The more they oppose, the more they expose themselves. The latest example is the Covid vaccine , “Nadda said. “To further their own failed policy and nefarious agendas, Congress and other opposition leaders are trying to panic the minds of the people. I urge them to do politics on other issues,” he said.
Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan was equally unhappy with comments from opposition leaders when he tweeted: “Shame on someone politicizing such a critical issue. Wake up and understand that they are only discrediting you! themselves! ”
In his tweet, he tagged opposition leaders, including Congressional Shashi Tharoor, Jairam Ramesh, and SP’s Akhilesh Yadav. Yadav had asked people on Saturday not to get vaccinated.
Tharoor, Ramesh and Congressman Anand Sharma had expressed concern that India’s drug regulator granted permission for the restricted use of Bharat Biotech’s Covid-19 vaccine. “The Ministry of Health must give compelling reasons to dispense with mandatory protocols and requirements in this case, as it concerns the health and safety of front-line workers who will be vaccinated in the restricted category,” Sharma said.
Jairam Ramesh and Tharoor echoed Sharma’s concerns. Ramesh said that Bharat Biotech is a “first-rate company”, but it was “puzzling” why the government “modified” the internationally accepted protocols related to phase 3 trials for Covaxin.
The BJP responded with the Minister of Oil, Dharmendra Pradhan, reacting: “To belittle the achievements of the nation is an all-time pastime of the Congress and its gang of leaders of the ’cause of rent'”.
On video: Akhilesh does not even listen to his father: Narottam Mishra on the comments of the head of SP on the ‘BJP vaccine’
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