India crossed one million COVID-19 cases on July 17, but people continue to violate social distancing rules. Photo courtesy of Unsplash
A nightclub in India’s capital city of Delhi was raided on July 14 while hosting an illegal party with at least 31 people attending it amid the pandemic which continues to ravage the world’s third worst-hit country, and which has purged the nightlife scene the world over.The club, ironically called Playgue, sent out secret invitations just a day before the party through WhatsApp messages. They went out to a few of its loyal customers from the pre-coronavirus days. At least 31 people showed up at the party, going against all government orders. But after an anonymous tip-off by someone who spotted a slew of cars outside the club, the cops bust the secret party.The nightclub allegedly operated under the guise of being a restaurant that offered takeaway food facilities. The cops were tipped off when queues of cars outside the club started causing a ruckus on the road.When the cops reached the location, they found the attendees smoking, drinking and dancing, flouting all social distancing guidelines. The club was not only serving hookah and alcohol—the sale of which is prohibited in all places except state-regulated shops—but also reportedly did not have a permit to serve alcohol pre-pandemic either. The cops seized 11 bottles of alcohol, 77 beer bottles, and eight hookahs.“We have sealed the club and will conduct COVID-19 tests on all the visitors,” a police officer told The Times of India. “If any of them are found to be positive, they will be booked for additional violations under various sections of IPC (Indian Penal Code).”The club owners and brothers Lavish and Kashish Khurana, who were present at the party, were also booked under the IPC Section 188 (violation of government order) and various sections of the Excise Act, Epidemic Diseases Act, Disaster Management Act, and Cigarette and Other Tobacco Products Act.While the numbers of coronavirus cases keep on steadily rising globally, people continue to attend large gatherings and parties. In May, over 100 cases of coronavirus were linked to just one man’s night out in South Korea. In June, Europe saw several illegal raves pop up—two of them in the UK were attended by as many as 6,000 people. And just last week, a 30-year-old in Texas who thought the coronavirus pandemic was a hoax died after attending a party and contracting the virus.Follow Satviki on Instagram.
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