Amit Shah, Yediyurappa among politicians to report COVID-19 infection on August 2

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On August 2, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa and Tamil Nadu Governor Banwarilal Purohit, among others, joined the growing list of high-profile politicians and prominent public figures in India to have tested positive for COVID-19.

Union Home Minister

Shah took to Twitter and announced that he had been infected by COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus.

"On getting the initial symptoms of corona, I got the test done and the report came back positive. My health is fine, but I am being admitted to the hospital on the advice of doctors. I request that all of you who have come in contact with me in the last few days, please isolate yourself and get your inquiry done," he said.

He was admitted to Medanta, a private hospital in Gurugram. According to news agency ANI, a team of doctors, led by All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) Director Dr Randeep Guleria, is expected to visit Medanta hospital to review Shah’s COVID-19 treatment.

Karnataka CM

Taking to Twitter, Yediyurappa said he has tested positive for COVID-19 and was being “hospitalised as a precaution”.

"I have tested positive for coronavirus. Whilst I am fine, I am being hospitalised as a precaution on the recommendation of doctors. I request those who have come in contact with me recently to be observant and exercise self quarantine," the veteran Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader wrote on Twitter.

Yediyurappa is the fourth member of his Cabinet to contract the disease. Earlier, Forest Minister Anand Singh, Tourism Minister CT Ravi and Agriculture Minister BC Patil had tested positive for COVID-19.

Tamil Nadu Governor

Tamil Nadu Governor Banwarilal Purohit, 80, also tested positive for COVID-19, according to a statement issued by a Chennai hospital. He was advised home isolation as the infection is mild.

"He is asymptomatic and clinically stable," Chennai's Kauvery Hospital said in a statement. A medical team from the hospital will be monitoring the governor's health.

The governor had been previously advised to go on a seven-day self-isolation period upon doctor's advice. Last week, 84 people at the Raj Bhavan had tested positive for COVID-19. However, the Governor's Office had then said none of them had come in contact with Purohit or other senior officials.

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On the same day, Uttar Pradesh’s only woman Cabinet minister Kamal Rani Varun died due to COVID-19 at a hospital in Lucknow. She was 62.

The technical education minister, who had tested positive for COVID-19 on July 18, breathed her last at the Sanjay Gandhi Postgraduate Institute of Medical Sciences (SGPIMS). She reportedly had co-morbidities, including diabetes, hypertension and hyperthyroidism.

The state’s water minister Mahendra Singh and the chief of BJP's Uttar Pradesh unit Swatantra Dev Singh also tested positive for COVID-19. Many other ministers in Uttar Pradesh had tested positive for the infectious disease earlier.

Last week, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan had tested positive for COVID-19. He later held a Cabinet meeting from the hospital via video conference.

India reported 17.5 lakh COVID-19 cases as of August 2. This figure includes cases related to foreign nationals in the country, a death toll of 37,364, over 11 lakh recoveries and 5.6 lakh active cases.

Globally, there have been over 1.79 crore confirmed cases of COVID-19. More than 6.85 lakh people have died so far.

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