Karnataka’s Congress MLA Gundu Rao tests corona positive

Bengaluru: Karnataka’s Congress legislator Dinesh Gundu Rao tested coronavirus positive and was sent in home isolation, an official said on Sunday.

“Rao’s swab sample result, which came earlier in the day, was positive. He is presently in isolation at his home in the city,” party spokesman Ravi Gowda told IANS.

Rao, 50, is a fifth-time legislator from Gandhinagar segment in Bengaluru central suburb.

“I have tested crona positive today. Therefore, will be quarantining myself for 10 days. I request all my primary contacts to get checked and take precautions,” Rao tweeted.

Rao attended the truncated 6-day Monsoon Session of the Assembly at Vidhana Soudha in the city centre till Saturday night.

“Rao attended the Assembly session from September 21, after he tested negative in mandatory corona test he took along with other lawmakers on September 18 and was well till yesterday (Saturday),” Gowda recalled.

Rao was the party’s state unit President till March and is the party’s Tamil Nadu unit incharge. He was a Minister in the Siddaramaiah-led Congress government in 2015-16.

“Rao visited Chennai on September 25 and met the party’s Tami Nadu unit members and DMK President MK Stalin before returning to the city on Saturday morning,” Gowda added.

As about 60 legislators and scores of legislature Secretariat staff tested positive, the 8-day session was curtailed to 6 days and adjourned sine die on Saturday night.

Those infected include Deputy Chief Ministers Govind Karjol and CN Ashwath Narayan, Home Minister Basavarj Bommai, Food and Civil Supplies Minister K Gopalaiah, Urban Development Minister Byrathi Basavaraj, and Animal Husbandry Minister Prabhu Chauhan.