“The strain that is prevalent in many of the Covid-19 cases in recent weeks is the B.1.617.2 variant, which originated in India. Phylogenetic testing has shown this B.1.617.2 variant to be associated with several clusters in Singapore,” said the ministry’s spokesperson in a statement issued late last night.

“There is no truth whatsoever in the assertions found within the reports,” said the spokesperson.

The MOH was referring to news reports by Hindustan Times quoting Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal with the headlines “Coronavirus variant found in Singapore can be India’s 3rd wave, extremely dangerous for kids, warns Arvind Kejriwal”.

Indian news portal NDTV also carried a story relating to the so called variant with the title “Stop Singapore Flights: Arvind Kejriwal To Centre Over New Covid Strain”.

Both published on May 18.

In a separate statement, Singapore’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) said it regrets the unfounded assertions made on Facebook and Twitter by Kejriwal that a variant of Covid-19 found in Singapore was particularly harmful to children and could cause a third wave of infections in India.

“MFA is disappointed that a prominent political figure had failed to ascertain the facts before making such claims. MFA met the High Commissioner of India P Kumaran this morning to express these concerns,” said the ministry’s spokesperson.