New Delhi: Thousands of doctors across India wore black armbands on Tuesday calling for the arrest of a hugely popular guru who has claimed yoga can prevent Covid-19 and that conventional medicine has killed thousands of coronavirus patients.
Baba Ramdev, the creator of a successful traditional medicine empire, said last month the pandemic showed modern pharmaceuticals to be "stupid and failed science" and claimed hundreds of thousands "have died because they had allopathy (conventional) medicines".
On Tuesday's "Black Day" of protests, photos on social media showed doctors with banners demanding the arrest of "Quack Ramdev" while others wore PPE suits with #ArrestRamdev written on the back.
The doctors' association at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), one of Delhi's biggest government hospitals, called Ramdev's comments "disgraceful".
Pakistani talk-show host taken off screen
ISLAMABAD: Prominent Pakistani political TV talk-show host Hamid Mir was suspended from his regular program on Monday, his media group Geo News network said, following comments he made last week against the powerful military for its role in media censorship.
A spokesman for Geo did not specify if Mir's absence was permanent, but his show was hosted by a stand-in anchor on Monday.
Mir, who survived an assassination attempt in 2014, is the latest target of an alleged military backed media crackdown that started in the run-up to 2018 election that brought Prime Minister Imran Khan to power.
Critics say the crackdown is part of a campaign to coerce Khan's opposition and silence critical voices in the media to prop him up as the military's protege. Both the military and Khan deny the accusation.
Philippines extends ban on inbound travel
MANILA: Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte on Monday prolonged partial coronavirus curbs in the capital and nearby provinces until mid-June to contain infections that have been decreasing since hitting a peak in April.
Religious gathering remain capped at 30 per cent of venue capacity while dining in restaurants can operate at 20% in the capital region, an urban sprawl of 16 cities that is home to at least 13 million people, and nearby provinces.
Non-essential travels will remain prohibited.
Daily Covid-19 cases in the Philippines averaged roughly 6,300 for May, down by a third from April, after the government reduced operating capacity of businesses and limited the movement of people.
transmission of the coronavirus variant first discovered in India that is circulating widely in that country and the region.
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