As the Nizamuddin Markaz turns out to be an epicentre of coronavirus spread not only in the city but also across the country, authorities have started a blame game regarding the same. The Markaz building, which is the international headquarters of Tablighi Jamaat, an Islamic missionary movement, for around last 100 years, continued to house about 2,000 people from different parts of the country and world despite several orders issued by the Delhi Health Department.

The first order was issued on March 13 which said "all sports gathering, including IPL, conferences and seminars beyond 200 people are prohibited in Delhi for the purpose of prevention and control of the outbreak of epidemic disease namely COVID-19." Since the March 13 order had no mention of religious gathering, another order was issued on March 16 which said: "Any gathering -- social, cultural, political, religious, academic, sports, seminar, conference and family mass gathering, except marriage, is restricted to a maximum of 50 persons in Delhi till March 31."

Three days later, on March 19, the government barred gathering of 20 people for any purpose, including religious and on March 21, the gathering cap was for five people.

About the programme, the Nizamuddin Markaz said: "All such programmes are planned in advance as visitors, guests, devotees and worshipers from across the globe need to plan their participation. These programmes last for not more than 3-5 days."

However, the ongoing programme was discontinued immediately after the 'Janata Curfew' on March 22 was announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the body further said.

"A large group of visitors who had to depart through trains got stuck in the premises due to sudden cancellation of rail services across the country on March 21," the body said.

However, the Markaz did not comment on the gathering of so many people in the building despite the government order barring the gathering.

According to Delhi government, the gathering was a "violation" of its order.

"Clearly the order was violated of the March 13 order which says the gathering of 200 or more was banned. This calls for criminal action," a government official told IANS.

The official said the Markaz cannot use it as an excuse that they had informed the police. "Doing that after the lockdown was imposed means nothing."

Why did the 'Talighi Jamaat' let so many people part of such a large gathering despite the March 12 order which said that all people with travel history to COVID-19 affected countries were to be self-isolated?

Till now, 24 people have been tested positive in Delhi from the gathering. While 441 were taken to hospitals, 1,447 have been quarantined.

The Yogi Adityanath government in Uttar Pradesh has identified and quarantined nearly 95 per cent persons who had attended the Tablighi Jamaat meet in Delhi in March.
"We have also been conducting raids in various districts where some of the foreign nationals have been hiding after the lockdown. We are examining their travel documents and those who have violated rules, are being booked under relevant sections," said a senior police official.

At least 14 Bangladeshis and two Indians were taken into custody by Jaunpur police. They had attended the Tablighi Jamaat event in Delhi and then reached Jaunpur where they were staying in a rented house in Sarai Khwaja area without informing police. Inspector Sarai Khwaja, Satya Prakash Singh, said that all these persons were booked under appropriate sections of epidemic disease act, passport act and foreigners act. All of them have been sent to a shelter home where they will be examined by a team of doctors and kept in quarantine for the specified period.