The 34-year-old man has put up a poster outside his home amid alleged social boycott.
A poster outside a house in Shivpuri district of Madhya Pradesh, about 280 km from state capital Bhopal, reads: "This house is for sale". It has been put up by a man who has alleged social boycott because he had coronavirus.
Strong willpower helped him win the fight against the highly contagious illness, which has infected over 18 lakh across the world and killed over 1 lakh, the 34-year-old man said. "Officials in the district administration were constantly in touch with me when I was recuperating, they made it a point to constantly check on me," he added. His morale, however, took a hit after he returned to his home and faced discrimination in the neighbourhood.
"I want to sell my house and leave this locality with my family," he said. Sixty-three people in his neighbourhood were screened and quarantined in their homes after he tested positive for COVID-19 following his return from Dubai on March 18.
"Milkman, vegetable vendors are not allowed to come near our house. We are facing harassment since the time my son contracted the infection. As the night falls, some of the neighbours gather outside our home. We can hearing them cursing us," his father told NDTV.
When NDTV tried speaking to the people in the locality, they refused to talk.
"This illness can happen to anybody. It's not fair to discriminate against people," the man said.
In Madhya Pradesh, 562 people have contracted coronavirus so far; 41 have already recovered. Most of these cases have been reported from Indore. Across India, the COVID-19 count has crossed the 9,000-mark, which includes 300 deaths.