Is China hiding something?

RK Sinha

Mystery shrouds the origin of Coronavirus. There are two main beliefs.First,it is man-made and has taken birth in a Chinese  lab.Second,it was produced during a research on bats which have many viruses.However,there is little or no dispute on one thing that the first corona-infected person was found in China and it has spread from there.

The first theory that it “originated” in a lab in Wuhan in China has more believers because it was attributed to a Japanese Nobel Prize winner Dr.Tasuku Honjo. A report of his denial  was circulated in social media subsequently but it was not taken seriously by many.The result is that it is widely believed that the virus is man-made.The other theory has not found many takers.

Dr.Tasuku Honjo, who is  a Professor in  Department of Immunology and Genomic Medicine at the Kyoto University in Japan and received the Nobel Prize for Immunology ,is reported to have said that this virus is  man-made and  that it has nothing to do with bats .

He has been also quoted as saying that he has himself  worked in the laboratory of virology in Wuhan, China, for four years and that  every  scientist and technician there is well acquainted with me. When this virus spread he had called one of his scientific friends working in Wuhan laboratory. But, nobody’s phone was found in working condition. Everyone’s phone was either off or completely dead. After three months he came to know that all those scientists and technicians  were either  not in that laboratory any more or were dead.It is certainly a serious issue.

He has been researching only on viruses and immunology for the last 40 years.He could not come across any virus during this period which survived in all kinds of environments and all kinds of temperatures. It is  the first virus that is alive in the temperature of China,in the snowy areas of Switzerland and the deserts of Central Asia. This is not possible . The minimum and maximum temperature for a virus to survive is almost known and fixed. But this virus named Covid-19 is surviving in all kinds of temperatures.

It has  spread in China, also in Switzerland, Italy, France, Germany, Japan, Africa, Russia, America and India.This is something impossible. This can only be possible if it is an artificial virus created in the laboratory,may be for mass destruction.He is also  reported to have said that if he was proved wrong, whether during his  lifetime or after death his prize should be withdraw and  name removed from the list of Nobel Prize winners .If this statement  has been really made by him then no one should have any doubt and totally believe that the virus was created in the lab in China and has spread from there.

In the light  of this and the statement of France’s scientist President Donald Trump’s demand for an  investigation into the working of  Wuhan lab is fully justifiable.What is wrong with that?If you go through the profile of Dr. Tasuku Honjo in Wikipedia you will find that he has been associated with hundreds of types of researches and has received dozens of international awards. His  reported statement,therefore,reinforces the belief that it is not a natural virus.However, intelligence agencies of countries like America, England, France, Germany and Japan which are making inquiries themselves and trying to ascertain the truth.

There are some other unanswered questions.Why did,for example China do this,if the report is true? Some people say that China itself wanted to bring down its population. Others say it was because  China did not want to see America still on the top–a number one economic in the world. China wanted  to become super power one way or the other.Whatever may be the truth,there is no doubt it plays a lot of tricks.It changes track whenever it is caught and does things to divert attention.

Take the Nepal’s territorial demand, for instance.China is largely believed to be behind this.Origin of every river is known.The Kali river is no exception.The river originates from the area close to the Kali temple. Everyone knows where the Kali temple exists. If one looks below he  can see  a stream  flowing down and the same transforming into a river.Coming down it divides India and Nepal. But now,allegedly at the behest of China, the rulers of Nepal say that the Kali river has not originated from there.It has come from some other place in Kumaon region.The fact is that there is a stream coming from the region which joins  the Kali river downstream.

Some other such reports have also come to light.China,which has created tension in Vietnam and Taiwan,has deployed additional forces on Ladakh border.Clearly,It has expansion in mind. Whether it will succeed or fail is difficult to predict.Only time will provide the answer.But one thing clear that Dr. Honjo’s statement has created a panic.A deep investigation,therefore,is required for the whole truth to come out.

(The writer is a senior editor, columnist and former MP)