Asked if the spike in COVID-19 cases can be linked to election rallies and campaigns held before the three-phase assembly polls which concluded on April 6, Sarma, also a senior BJP leader said that no connection could be established between the two. "We had conducted a study to find out if COVID cases had increased where there were more election rallies, but this could not established. Out of the 126 assembly constituencies in the state, there are no cases in around 100 of them," he said.