Lockdown to Contain Coronavirus May be Right but 21 Days a Bit Too Long: Prashant Kishor

Patna: Poll strategist-turned-politician Prashant Kishor on Wednesday expressed skepticism over the three-week nationwide lockdown clamped by the Narendra Modi government, contending that the measure could be right though the duration was a bit too long.

In a tweet, Kishor, who had started off as a campaign manager for Modi in 2014 but turned into a strident critic of his government in recent times, also underscored shaky preparedness to deal with the pandemics outbreak in the country where there was very little to safeguard the poor.

Decision to #lockdownindia may be right but 21 days might (be) a bit too long. But then this is the price one pays for being behind the curve. With the shaky preparedness to deal with the #CovidCrisis and very little to safeguard the poor, we could be staring at some tough days ahead," Kishor tweeted.

The combative 43-year-old, who was recently sacked from the JD(U) for launching a direct attack on party president and Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, engaged in a spat with biopharmaceutical magnate Kiran Mazumdar Shaw who reacted to his tweet saying please do not make statements without understanding the scientific rationale. I believe it is the right move and it will help us to take informed decisions based on more test data.

It is, Kishor shot back, asserting that he had called the lockdown period bit too long out of conviction.

There is no scientific evidence to suggest that mere 21 days #lockdown without adequate testing, isolation and treatment measures could stop #Covidspread. Plus, while a badly executed lockdown may not achieve its goal, it surely will destroy life and livelihood of millions," he added.

Kishor, who has been engaged in devising strategies for political figures as diverse as Jagan Mohan Reddy, Arvind Kejriwal and Mamata Banerjee, had last month announced his intentions to devote much of his time and energy to his home state with the "Baat Bihar Ki" campaign, which ran into a controversy on account of a lawsuit filed against him for violation of intellectual property rights.