New Delhi: Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, in an effort to thank Prime Minister Narendra Modi for agreeing to supply the antimalarial drug hydroxychloroquine to the country, invoked Hindu god Hanuman and Jesus Christ to claim that India and Brazil will join forces to defeat the coronavirus pandemic.

Brazil, along with United States and other countries, had requested India to supply them with HCQ, a contentious prophylactic for healthcare workers on the frontline against COVID-19.

India had last month put HCQ in the prohibited category for export items. Since then, Brazil and other countries have reiterated their request for India to supply the medical tablets, even though its usage for COVID-19 patients is still being tested in clinical trials.

US President Donald Trump had made his request to Modi in a phone conversation on Saturday. Even while India was considering his request positively, Trump suggested that the US could retaliate if New Delhi, as the largest manufacturer of HCQ, did not supply them with the tablets.

On Tuesday, India announced that it will relax the prohibition on the export of HCQ and paracetamol for neighbouring countries and for those nations who have been hit hardest by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Also watch | Coronavirus Updates, April 7: Hydroxychloroquine and the Coronavirus, Explained

While the external affairs ministry had made the announcement on Tuesday, the Directorate General of Foreign Trade is yet to issue a notification amending its earlier order, 24 hours later.

However, far-right Brazilian president Bolsonaro was quick to express gratitude to the Indian PM for the change in policy.

In an extract from his letter released by government sources, Bolsanaro wrote, “Just as Lord Hanuman brought the holy medicine from the Himalayas to save the life of Lord Rama's brother Lakshmana, and Jesus healed those who were sick and restored the sight to Bartimeu, India and Brazil will overcome this global crisis by joining forces and sharing blessings for the sake of all people”.

The release of the extract of the letter found immediate resonance in India, as Wednesday is celebrated as Hanuman Jayanti by many Hindus around the world.

Bolsanaro had travelled to India earlier this year to be the chief guest at India’s Republic Day celebrations.

While the Brazilian President has been asking for HCQ from India, Bolsanaro has been at odds domestically with his own cabinet and provincial governors over his consistent downplaying of the COVID-19 pandemic.

He has been strongly resisting calls for a nationwide lockdown, even as Brazil nears the 14,000 mark in patients affected by the coronavirus infection. More than 650 have died.

Also read: Does a Pandemic Justify Using Hydroxychloroquine to Beat the Coronavirus?

With Bolsanaro describing the critics of his pandemic policy as ‘job killers’, the Brazilian president accepted a request from his Evangelical Christian supporters and called for a national day of fasting and prayer last Sunday to “free Brazil from this evil”.

According to local Brazilian media, Bolsonaro was planning to fire his own health minister Luiz Henrique Mandetta due to their differences on the need to reinforce social distancing. But he had to back away, after military officers in his government opposed him and supported Mandetta, reported Reuters on Monday. 

Meanwhile, the Brazilian health minister told reporters that they were looking at China to fulfil its requirement for mechanical ventilators and masks.

Earlier, the Brazilian education minister and President Bolsonaro's lawmaker son had pointed fingers at China for allegedly exacerbating the coronavirus stituation, which led to a diplomatic spat with Beijing.

Mandetta had earlier claimed China had cancelled orders for Brazilian equipment after the US government sent “more than 20 cargo planes to China to buy the same products”.

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