Ahead of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's December 28 rally in Mumbai, Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar on Thursday said the authorities will have to "think about it" if the newly discovered Omicron variant of coronavirus spreads.
Pawar made the remark when a reporter asked whether permission should be given to the Congress leader's rally in view of the situation caused by Omicron, the variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus found in Africa last month that is causing worries worldwide.
"We are taking information about it (Omicron situation) every day. In case it (the variant) spreads and if there is a doubt that huge crowds can lead to some different (undesirable) situation, then (authorities) will have to think about it," he told media persons here.
Congress' Maharashtra in-charge H K Patil had last month said the Wayanad MP will address a rally at the Shivaji Park here on December 28.
So far, Maharashtra has reported 10 cases of Omicron, classified as a 'variant of concern' by the World Health Organization (WHO).
Three of these cases have been reported in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region.
