Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa was discharged from the hospital on Monday evening, after he tested negative for COVID-19.
The chief minister was admitted to the Manipal hospital in Bengaluru on August 2, after he tested positive for COVID-19. Though he was asymptomatic, he was hospitalised on doctor's advice.
One of his daughters, too, was tested positive and was hospitalised along with the 77-year-old leader.
Yediyurappa, who was recuperating in the hospital for the past nine days, was discharged only after his tested negative for the virus. He will be under home isolation for five days, sources said.
Yediyurappa has been holding series of meetings amid the COVID-19 crisis. While most meeting were held through videoconferencing, many crucial review meetings with the cabinet ministers have been offline, which has triggered panic among the ministers.
In June, Yediyurappa had to shift all official meetings to Vidhana Soudha after a staff member at the CM's home-office ‘Krishna’ became a primary contact of a COVID-19 patient. Again in mid-July, Yediyurappa was under home quarantine at his private residence after three staff members at Krishna had tested positive. In the last week of July, Yediyurappa attended both offline and online events at Krishna and Vidhana Soudha. He laid the foundation stone for Life Sciences Park in Electronics City, and addressed an event to mark one year of the BJP government in the state and had also met Governor Vajubhai Vala at Raj Bhavan.
Apart from Yediyurappa, opposition leader and former chief minister Siddaramiah and his son and MLA Yathindra, too tested positive for COVID-19. Also, Tourism Minister C.T. Ravi, who was infected in July has recovered, while Agriculture Minister B.C. Patil and Cooperation Minister S.T. Somashekhar were under home quarantine.
MLAs Dr Ajay Singh (Jewargi), Prasad Abbayya (Hubli-Dharwad East), Mahantesh Koujalgi (Bailhongal), and Rajshekhar Patil (Humnabad) had tested positive in July. Harish Poonja (Belthangady), Naganagouda Kandkur (Gurmitkal) and G.T. Devegowda (Chamundeshwari) too were infected.
