India's Interior Minister Amit Shah has been admitted to hospital after catching the coronavirus, he said on Sunday, becoming the most senior politician in the country to test positive for the disease.
Mr Shah, a close aide to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, heads a ministry that has been at the forefront of managing the epidemic.
India's coronavirus outbreak is the third-worst in the world behind the United States and Brazil, with nearly 1.7 million confirmed cases and 36,500 deaths, according to a Reuters tally.
"I request all of you who came in contact with me in the last few days to isolate yourselves and get tested," Mr Shah said in a tweet.
The 55-year-old said he had got himself tested after exhibiting initial symptoms of COVID-19.
Indian Interior Minister Amit Shah is a close aide of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Source: AP
"My health is fine but I am being hospitalised on the advice of doctors," he added.
An interior ministry spokesman said he was unable to immediately comment on when Mr Shah had last met with Mr Modi.
It came as India reported another record surge in daily COVID-19 cases, taking the total to 1.64 million.
Across India, infections jumped by 55,078 in the past 24 hours, while the death toll rose by 779 to 35,747, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare said on its website.
The ministry also said it aimed to raise the country’s capacity to one million coronavirus tests per day in the medium term, from a record 600,000 on Friday.
The federal government this week announced the reopening of yoga institutes and gymnasiums, and removed restrictions on the movement of people and goods.
