The federal minister made these remarks in reference to the insistence of the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) to go ahead with Peshawar Jalsa despite a ban on large gatherings due to COVID-19. He took to Twitter to express his displeasure over the situation while providing worrisome figures of the coronavirus situation in the provincial capital of Khyber-PakhtunKhawa.

In his tweet, Asad Umar said:

"Peshawar COVID-19 positivity ratio 13.39% yesterday. Patients in critical care: 202. Of these 50 on low flow oxygen, 134 on high flow, and 18 on ventilators. 14 new critical patients just yesterday. PDM response: we will be safe on the stage so who cares what happens to citizens."

Khan backs Umar's sentiments:

Prime Minister Imran Khan lent his support to Asad Umar and said that the opposition is defying the court orders by planning to go ahead with the Peshawar Jalsa. He was quote retweeting the minister of planning and development:

"The same PDM members who had wanted a strict lockdown and criticized me earlier now playing reckless politics with people's safety. They are even defying court orders & holding a jalsa when cases are rising dramatically."

These remarks came a day after the KP government refused to allow the PDM to hold a public rally in Peshawar due to increasing cases of coronavirus. The district administration had issued a notification in this regard, stating that a joint meeting was held with the organizers of the said rally.

Ceremonies and public gatherings are to be avoided as the Covid-19 positivity rate for district Peshawar has presently exceeded 13 percent, which is alarmingly high and any large public gathering is likely to further increase the spread of the life-threatening virus, the notification stated.

It further wrote that the local authorities regret to inform that permission for the said event has not been granted to the opposition parties. It is to be mentioned here that PDM leadership has pledged to hold a rally in Peshawar on November 22 at any cost.