Islamabad: A police case has been registered against Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Health Minister Taimur Saleem Jhagra for breaking COVID-19 rules when he hosted an Iftar party on Monday.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) police have registered a first information report (FIR) against Jhagra as well as the owner and manager of a restaurant in Peshawar for violating coronavirus standard operating procedures (SOPs). The restaurant has been sealed.
The police took prompt action after the photos of the Iftar feast were shared on social media. The photos showed Jhagra and others sitting close to each other and not observing social distancing and mask-wearing rules.
“There will be no compromise on coronavirus rules. If SOPs are violated, the law will come into action,” Peshawar Assistant Commissioner Ehteshamul Haq told reporters.
Indoor and outdoor dining and events were banned last week in major cities including Peshawar following the National Command Operation Centre’s decision to break the chain of infections amid a surge in cases.
The FIR was registered under Sections 6 to 17 of the KP Epidemic Control and Emergency Relief Act, 2020, which is related to the prevention and control of infectious diseases in the province and to provide relief to the people in emergency situation.
KP COVID-19 situation
Pakistan’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province is averaging nearly 35 fatalities and 1,100 cases per day during the month of April. Four districts of KP – Peshawar, Swat, Mardan and Nowshera – are among the infected in the region, according to estimates. Pakistan Army troops have also been deployed in the areas of KP province where the positivity rate was very high.
The province reported 584 new cases and 22 deaths during the last 24 hours. The total cases in the province now stand at 114,661 and the death toll has reached 3,156 since the pandemic began.
