Centre's claim of 1 billion vaccines is false, will prove it: Sanjay Raut

Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut has debunked the tall claim that India has achieved the milestone of administering one billion COVID-19 vaccine doses. He has even gone as far as saying this declaration was ‘false’.

On Sunday (October 24), while addressing a meeting of party workers at Nashik in Maharashtra, Raut alleged that not more than 23 crore doses have been given to the eligible beneficiaries. The Shiv Sena leader also claimed that he would ‘provide proof’ that the ‘billion doses administered’ claim was wrong.

“How much will you lie?” Raut asked without specifying any names. “In the last fortnight, 20 Hindus and Sikhs have been killed, 17 to 18 soldiers have been martyred, China is creating problems in Arunachal Pradesh and Ladakh, but we are celebrating 100 crore vaccination, which is not true,” Raut said, questioning who counted the total number of vaccines administered to the people.

Meanwhile, reacting to the statements made by Raut, Maharashtra BJP spokesperson Keshav Upadhye said that the Shiv Sena leader’s comments were ‘laughable’. He also added that leaders are used to ‘making baseless claims’.

“Raut’s comment on 100 crore vaccination, when the figures are clearly seen, is nothing but laughable,” Upadhye said.

Also read: 100-crore jabs a milestone, but bigger challenges await us

On October 21, India achieved a major milestone by crossing the one billion mark of cumulative COVID-19 vaccine doses administered under the vaccination drive. The Centre celebrated the achievement in several ways, one of which was to illuminate 100 landmarks across the country in the tricolour.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya and several political leaders conveyed their wishes on the occasion. In addition, countries like the US, Israel and global bodies like the World Health Organisation (WHO) also lauded the achievement.

The Congress party too criticised the government for the celebrations and the party’s national spokesperson Pawan Khera said that it was an “insult” to the people and families suffering from the effects of the pandemic.