Guwahati: Athgaon Kabristan Masjid Declared as "Containment Zone", Sealed Off for 14 Days

Guwahati, April 10, 2020:

Assam Health and Finance Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has just announced that the Athgaon Masjid in Guwahati city shall be turned into a containment zone after it came to light that as many as three people from the state who have tested positive for the COVID-19 have links to the location.

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Addressing a presser in Guwahati, Sarma said, "Faizul, Jamaaluddin and Rohiuddin. These three cases established a fact that they had spent the night of March 12 at the Athgaon Masjid. Initially, we had not received adequate information. However, yesterday, we got the information from three districts. Dhubri administration said that Rohiuddin and Jamaaluddin were in contact with each other. The link is the Athgaon Kabristan Masjid."

Sarma told the media that although it was not earlier established that all three of the patients had visited the mosque, it was later ascertained that they all had spent time there in the recent past. "They did not tell us in the beginning that a meeting was also held at the Masjid. Today, the police investigated and informed us that on 12th, 100 people had gathered for an event. The event was attended by some locals and Markaz attendees. And among these were the three. Two Dhubri patients and the Karimganj man."

The Minister also claimed that the Athgaon Masjid in Guwahati is gradually turning into a "hotbed" and said that it will soon be converted into a containment zone like the high-end Spanish Garden apartment that was sealed off after a businessman aged 52 tested positive for the virus.

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"From today onwards, we declare the Masjid as a containment zone. Nobody will be allowed to enter or exit the masjid. If someone like caretakers are there, the district administration will provide them with food inside the masjid premises. They will also be able to conduct the religious duties from within the Masjid grounds", Sarma further added.

In the wee hours today, Assam reported its first death due to COVID-19 in the early hours of Friday. 65-year-old Faijul Haque Barbhuyan, hailing from Hailakandi, passed away around 1:45 AM on April 10 following complications of the virus, informed Health Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma.

“With utmost Grief and sorrow,I would like to inform that Sri Faijul Haque Barbhyan,(65)Hailakandi District has expired few minutes back in SMCH due to complication of COVID19 infection. My deep condolences and prayers for the bereaved family,” Sarma tweeted.

It is pertinent to mention here that all but one of the COVID-19 positive patients from Assam have links to the Jamaat congregation at the Nizamuddin Markaz in New Delhi.

Thousands from across the country and abroad participated in the event. Attendees from Indonesia, Malaysia, Kashmir, Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Meghalaya and Arunachal Pradesh had participated in the Tabligh Jamaat held in March.

According to reports, 24 out of these had tested positive for COVID-19 and 200 others had shown symptoms of the virus. As many as 1,400 people were believed to have been exposed to the virus now. However, according to latest reports, 15 of them have still not reported to their nearest health centres.

A few Mosques and Muslim Societies in Assam have banned the entry of personnel from the Tablighi Jamaat sect. Two Mosques in Jorhat, Rojahauli and Kokilamukh, were the first to take the step.

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