Amid the ongoing Lok Sabha elections in 2024, the Congress party supporters and the anti-India opinion holders have begun to spread misinformation regarding the COVID-19 vaccine certificate.
The opposition parties and their supporters on social media are busy claiming that PM Modi’s photograph from the Covid vaccine certificate had been removed by the government after recent discussions on Covishield’s potential association with Thrombosis with Thrombocytopenia Syndrome (TTS), a rare side effect involving blood clotting resurfaced.
A well-known, notorious Supreme Court advocate Prashant Bhushan posted on X commenting on the matter. He indicated that PM Modi very smartly parted ways with the vaccines after knowing that their side effects had surfaced. “As soon as the lethal side effects of the COVID vaccines got publicized, Modi promptly got his photo removed from the vaccine certificates. Modi ka Kamaal!” he said.
Meanwhile, a fan page of TMC leader Mahua Moitra also made fun of the Prime Minister claiming that his photo had been removed from the certificates after the side effects of the COVID vaccines got publicized.
Further, one individual who identifies himself as an anti-Modi netizen indicated that PM Modi was scared. “Scared Modi! Modi ji is no more in the CoWIN certificate Modi’s Photo has been removed after AstraZeneca’s recent revelation!?? India look at your Prime Minister. Will he take the country forward in the World Arena?” he said.
Then, one Sandeep Manudhane who identifies himself as a ‘secular liberal’ on X also made fun of PM Modi and said, “Modi ji is no more visible on Covid Vaccine certificates. Just downloaded it to check- yes, his pic is gone”, with a laughter emoji.
Zee News journalist Mahendra Singh also happened to make fun of the Prime Minister. “Doesn’t matter if people breathe or not. But people will vote for Modi only,” he said passing a sarcastic comment.
Image removed due to Model Code of Conduct, says Health Minsitry
Notably, the Health Ministry took cognizance of the event and stated that the image of PM Modi had been removed from the COVID-19 vaccine certificates due to the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) in place due to the ongoing Lok Sabha elections. In the past, Modi’s picture was prominently displayed on these certificates, along with a statement reaffirming India’s determination to defeat the coronavirus. The government is still credited with the slogan, “Together, India will defeat COVID-19,” but the Prime Minister’s image is no longer on the certificates, reported the Hindu.
Discussions over Covishield’s possible link to Thrombosis with Thrombocytopenia Syndrome (TTS), an uncommon side effect involving blood clotting, have revived in the wake of vaccine producer AstraZeneca’s admission in a UK court. Several people in India since been looking over their vaccination records in light of this news.
However, representatives from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare informed on Tuesday (30th April) that the photograph of PM Modi was taken out of the vaccination certificate because the ongoing Lok Sabha elections are subject to regulation under the Model Code of Conduct (MCC).
Image was removed earlier during assembly elections too
It’s important to recall that PM Modi’s picture has previously also been taken off of COVID-19 immunization certificates. In 2022, vaccination certificates issued in the states of Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Manipur, and Goa were similarly devoid of Modi’s photograph. The Election Commission of India (ECI) had ordered this measure in anticipation of the state assembly elections back then.
Also previously, in 2021, there had been a dispute over the use of Modi’s photograph on vaccination certificates that had reached the Kerala High Court. “They may not be proud of their PMs, but we are proud of our PM,” Justice PV Kunhikrishnan had said in response to the argument that certificates produced in other nations did not include the images of elected officials.
After the Covisheild side effect row, Gujarat Congress president and Rajya Sabha member Shaktisinh Gohil slammed the BJP government and accused it of not keeping a record of data on side effects. “BJP government at the Centre did not follow the guidelines of the World Health Organisation (WHO),” he claimed adding that many young people lost their lives suddenly of heart attack after being administered by vaccines.
However, on May 1, medical professionals connected to the Gujarat BJP said that a state-conducted expert panel’s study had proven there was no connection between the COVID-19 vaccination and blood clotting, which could result in heart attacks.
Notably, after several people on social media called out The Hindu’s article that attempted to spread misinformation saying that PM Modi’s photo had been removed from the certificates after the news of side effects surfaced, the news media seems to have made changes in its post. The Hindu now has updated the earlier post leveling direct allegations against PM Modi to add the health ministry’s statement saying that the photograph has been removed due to the regulations of MCC.
General elections are being held in India from 19 April to 1 June 2024 in seven phases, to elect 543 members of the Lok Sabha. The votes will be counted and the results will be declared on 4 June 2024.
Fear mongering over Covishied vaccine irrational, say doctors
It is notable here that after media reports highlighted the AstraZeneca statement in court, a lot of fear-mongering has been prevalent in media and social media over COVID-19 vaccines. However, the facts of the matter are, that the chances of rare side effects of possible TTS or blood clotting are just 3-4 cases in a million-strong population, and the effects are seen within a few weeks of vaccination, that too after the first dose itself.
Most Indians were given the Covishield vaccine in 2021-22, more than 2 years ago and the fears of TTS are irrational. Opposition parties who tried their best to spread vaccine hesitancy just to defame the Modi government are the ones fanning the current wave of irrational fear-mongering against the vaccine.
Moreover, the product information on the AstraZeneca vaccine mentioning the extremely rare possibility TTS has always been there, for over 3 years now. The statement in court is not new information. All vaccines and medicines have some rare side effects and their public usage is granted after evaluating their general benefit to a larger population. Healthcare professionals and scientists across the world have affirmed repeatedly that the vaccines saved lives and minimalised Covid complications in millions of people.