Kumbh Fake Covid Test Scam Not From My Term: U’khand CM

FILE PHOTO: Devotees take a holy dip in the Ganga River during Shahi Snan at the "Kumbh Mela", amidst the spread of the coronavirus disease in Haridwar on April 14, 2021

The scam involving fake Covid tests during the Kumbh Mela in Haridwar took place before he took office, Uttarakhand Chief Minister Tirath Singh Rawat has said, while his predecessor Trivendra Singh Rawat demanded a judicial probe into it.

The decision to rope in private firms to conduct Covid tests during the Kumbh Mela was taken before he took charge as Chief Minister, Tirath Singh Rawat said.

“The scam is old. I took over in March. A probe has already been ordered into it and stern action will be taken against those involved,” he told reporters on the sidelines of a programme in Dehradun on Thursday.

Tirath Singh Rawat took over as Uttarakhand Chief Minister on March 10 while the Kumbh Mela was held between April 1 and April 30.

The Chief Minister expressed the state government’s resolve to bring out the truth and punish the guilty.

Meanwhile, his predecessor Trivendra Singh Rawat has demanded an impartial probe into the scam by a High Court judge, saying that the scam is serious in nature.

The Uttarakhand government on Thursday had lodged a case against a company and two private labs for fudging coronavirus test reports during the Kumbh Mela in April.

The firms, Max Corporate Service, Nalwa Laboratories Private Limited of Hisar and Delhi-based Dr Lalchandani Lab, have been accused of issuing fake negative test reports.