Shillong, Feb 9: United Democratic Party (UDP) candidate from North Shillong Dr Aman War on Thursday hit back at the opposition All India Trinamool Congress (AITC) for politicizing the Covid issue and tarnishing the image of people, who are helping others during the pandemic.

The former Director of Health Services (MI) was reacting to a recent statement made by the state general secretary of the TMC women’s wing, Noor Warjri. Warjri had alleged that the former DHS was claiming to be clueless about the Covid-19 expenditure of more than Rs 800 crore and trying to project a clean image among the electorate of the constituency.

Challenging Warjri for a debate on the matter, Dr War said, “Pirating something which she (Warjri) has got from others is not going to help. If she wants a debate on this at any point of time, anywhere, any place I am ready.”

The UDP candidate said Warjri’s allegation that he was pretending not to know about the Covid expenditure is as false as the ‘pseudo-cards’ of the TMC.

“The lady is saying that I am pretending not to know about the bills, I think this is very false. It is as false as the pseudo-cards which they have issued so far saying we are going to pay you this much but we have to be in power. It is as false as that only the pseudo-cards which they have issued so far are false. That is pure falsehood,” he added.

Asking the TMC leader to learn from the example of a ‘jhum cultivation’, Dr War said, “Jhum cultivation causes a lot of destruction so people who shift from one place to another place, one party to another party, they leave behind only destruction. So such people when they make any allegations first kindly look at your own backyard, and then comment on the sitting room.”

He added, “For these types of statements, we are taking into consideration after March 2, whether we can involve such types of people at the governance level.”

The former DHS (MI) further reiterated that his directorate had spent only Rs 248 crore as Covid expenditure till the time he retired from government service.

Stating that the rest of the Covid expenditure does not go through the DHS (MI), Dr War said, “That is why I said I don’t know about how they have spent the rest of money which amounted to Rs 800 plus crores.”