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Ex-Uttarakhand CM says coronavirus a living organism with right to live

Trivendra Singh Rawat said man needs to outpace the virus to stay safe

Trivendra Singh Rawat | PTI

Former Uttarakhand chief minister Trivendra Singh Rawat on Thursday said that coronavirus is a living organism, which has a right to live.

"Seen from a philosophical angle, coronavirus is also a living organism. It has the right to live like the rest of us. But we (humans) think ourselves to be the most intelligent and are out to eliminate it. So it is constantly mutating itself," he told a private news channel in Dehradun.

However, he said man needs to outpace the virus to stay safe. Rawat was trolled on social media for his unusual observation on coronavirus as it went viral at a time when the entire country is battling a strong second wave of COVID-19.

One Twitter user sarcastically said, "This virus organism should be given shelter in the Central Vista."

Rawat has been in the news previously for controversial statements. In 2019, he claimed cows not only inhale oxygen but also exhale it. Rawat even claimed massaging a cow can cure breathing problems, while living in close proximity with the animal can cure tuberculosis.