400 coronavirus cases linked to Tablighi Jamaat event in Delhi: Govt

The Centre on Thursday informed that as many as 400 people who attended the Tablighi Jamaat event at Nizamuddin Markaz in Delhi have tested positive for coronavirus.

"Through contact tracing in different states, we have found 400 coronavirus cases, whose epidemiological linkage can be traced to the Tablighi Jamaat cluster," Lav Aggarwal, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, said during a press briefing.

"Till now, maximum cases of 173 were found in Tamil Nadu. 11 cases in Rajasthan, 9 cases from Andaman and Nicobar, 47 cases in Delhi, 2 cases in Puducherry, 22 cases in Jammu and Kashmir, 33 cases in Telangana, 67 cases in Andhra and 16 cases in Assam. We are doing additional testing and more cases are likely to emerge," he added.

The religious event organised by the Tablighi Jamaat has resulted in Nizamuddin turning into a coronavirus hotspot after several cases were linked to the gathering, including the deaths in Maharashtra, Karnataka, and Telangana.

Earlier, an FIR was registered against Tablighi Jamaat head Maulana Saad and others for defying lockdown orders and organising a religious event.

Delhi Police's Crime Branch has sent notices to all 7 people who were named in the FIR including Maulana Saad to give a written statement on why the rules were not followed by them, sources quoted by news agency ANI said.

As per reports, at least 9,000 people have been quarantined across India who either attended the Nizamuddin event or came in contact with those who attended.