FIR against BJP MP for 'spreading rumour' over deaths

Police on Thursday registered an FIR against BJP MP Subhash Sarkar on the charge of spreading a rumour through a social media post over the cremation of two bodies. Sources in the police said the FIR was registered against the Bankura lawmaker after a complaint was lodged against him with the Bankura Sadar police station by Jaydeep Chattopadhyay, a leader of the ruling Trinamool Congress.

The BJP lawmaker had said on social media that the authorities were wrong in cremating two bodies, claiming that the persons had died of coronavirus. The TMC leader said, "The MP is a doctor himself. It is unfortunate that without seeing any report (of the two deceased), he tried to spread rumour through social media during the time of COVID-19 pandemic". The BJP MP hit back saying, "How did the administration cremate the bodies even before the test results have come?" The bodies of two persons who died in a government hospital were cremated by the authorities on April 12 midnight. Some people had demonstrated claiming that the two died of coronavirus.