Delhi chief minister 'doesn't speak for India', has 'no competence on Covid variants', say India govt officials

SINGAPORE — Government officials from India have spoken up in response to Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal’s claims of a “Singapore variant” of the coronavirus, saying he “does not speak for India” and “had no competence to pronounce on Covid variants”.

In a Twitter post, India’s Minister of External Affairs S Jaishankar refuted Mr Kejriwal’s claim made on Tuesday (May 18), that the so-called “Singapore variant” was particularly dangerous to children and could cause a third wave of infections in India. 

“Irresponsible comments from those who should know better can damage long-standing partnerships. So, let me clarify — Delhi CM (chief minister) does not speak for India,” wrote Dr Jaishankar. 

Mr Kejriwal's Aam Aadmi Party is a rival to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party.

Earlier on Wednesday, Singapore’s  Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) said it was “disappointed that a prominent political figure had failed to ascertain the facts before making such claims”. MFA officials had also met the High Commissioner of India P Kumaran to "express these concerns".

Confirming the meeting, India’s External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said in a tweet that Singapore had conveyed “strong objection” to Mr Kejriwal’s posts.

“(The) High Commissioner clarified that Delhi CM had no competence to pronounce on Covid variants or civil aviation policy,” Mr Bagchi wrote.

In a separate tweet in response to Mr Bagchi’s post, Dr Jaishankar reaffirmed that the two countries have been “solid partners in the fight against Covid-19”.

“Appreciate Singapore's role as a logistics hub and oxygen supplier. Their gesture of deploying military aircraft to help us speaks of our exceptional relationship,” he added.

Earlier on Wednesday, Singapore’s Foreign Affairs Minister Vivian Balakrishnan had tweeted a response to Mr Kejriwal, saying: “Politicians should stick to facts! There is no ‘Singapore variant’.”

Dr Balakrishnan later wrote a separate tweet to thank Dr Jaishankar for his response, saying: “Let’s focus on resolving the situation in our respective countries and helping one another. Nobody is safe until everyone is safe.”