Another BJP MLA tests positive for Covid-19 in Assam

The BJP MLA from Assam's Dispur constituency has tested positive for Covid-19 and has been admitted to a hospital here for treatment, officials said on Monday.

The MLA, Atul Bora, is the fifth from the ruling party to have tested positive for the contagious disease.

Bora tested positive for Covid-19 on Sunday night and was admitted to Gauhati Medical College and Hospital (GMCH) on Monday morning for treatment, a senior official of Kamrup Metropolitan district said.

Formerly with the Asom Gana Parishad (AGP), Bora joined the BJP before the 2016 state assembly polls and won the prestigious Dispur seat.

On Sunday, BJP's Sonari MLA Nabanita Handique had tested positive for Covid-19.

Earlier, her son, driver and a personal assistant had tested positive for the respiratory disease.

Previously, BJP MLAs Krishnendu Paul (Patharkandi), Naryan Deka (Barkhetry) and Bolin Chetia (Sadiya) had tested positive for Covid-19.

Paul and Deka have recovered and been discharged from hospitals.

Among other prominent politicians in the state who tested positive is All India Mahila Congress president and former MP Sushmita Dev. She was admitted to Silchar Medical College Hospital on July 8 and discharged on July 19 after she tested negative.

A host of senior bureaucrats and hundreds of police personnel have also been infected.

As of Sunday, Assam had a total of 23,999 Covid-19 cases. Guwahati alone accounts for 11,080 of these cases.