17 MPs including Meenakshi Lekhi, Anant Kumar Hegde test Covid-19 positive on Day 1 on monsoon session

17 Members of Parliament, including ruling BJP leaders Meenakshi Lekhi, Anant Kumar Hegde and Parvesh Sahib Singh, have tested positive for COVID-19 on the first day of Parliament’s Monsoon Session.

The MPs had undergone tests for COVID-19 as SOPs adopted to safely hold the Parliament session. The mandatory tests were conducted on Sunday and Monday.

Also Read: India’s COVID-19 tally crosses 48 Lakh mark with over 92,000 new cases

As per reports, of the 17 MPs, 12 are from the BJP, two from YSR Congress, and one each from Shiv Sena, DMK and RLP.
BJP's Sukanta Majumdar had earlier tweeted to inform that he had tested positive for coronavirus. Meenakshi Lekhi today put out a tweet to confirm the same.

Meenakshi wrote, “After the routine Parliament test for COVID & genome test it’s confirmed that I have tested positive for the virus. I am currently in good health & spirits. I request everyone who has been recently in contact with me to get tested. Together We will fight & defeat Corona”

Nearly 200 members were present in the Lok Sabha chamber and roughly 30 were seated in the visitors’ gallery located above the main chamber today. Plastic shields were installed in front of the members’ benches in order to ensure distance.

The Monsoon session 2020 of Parliament commenced today. The fourth session of 17th Lok Sabha and 252nd session of Rajya Sabha was scheduled to be held and subject to exigencies of government business, may conclude on October 1.

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