A video of Imarti Devi, a BJP leader from Madhya Pradesh, throwing away a mask given to her by volunteers of the Aam Aadmi Party is going viral on social media. The video, which was made on Friday, is making it to the trending list as an act like this from a minister, who’s expected to be responsible, has shocked citizens. She was seen without the mask and she threw away the one that was given to her too.

The Madhya Pradesh BJP leader who was traveling by  car was stopped by the workers as she was not wearing a mask.  Volunteers of the Aam Aadmi Party were distributing masks in Datia district to those who were seen not wearing them. In the video, Imarti Devi can be seen throwing away the mask offered by  volunteers.

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Imarti Devi was previously  Minister of Women and Child Development in the Kamal Nath-led Congress government. She along with 21 MLAs, including Jyotiaditya Scindia, had switched to the BJP in March 2020, toppling the Kamal Nath government.

Masks are one of the most effective precautionary methods to stem the spread of COVID-19.  Given that people test positive despite double doses of vaccination, a mask is considered to be the easy effective way to keep it at bay.

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Madhya Pradesh has witnessed a massive surge in the number of COVID cases. In a state where the COVID-19 tally reached 8,71,632 with an addition of 9,603 cases on Friday and where the death count has increased by four to reach 10,557 in the last twenty-four hours; a video of a minister throwing away a mask and the fact that she never wore it in first place has shocked  viewers. In a state with surging cases, it is expected of everyone to wear a mask and adhere to precautionary measures.