Allahabad HC Order Says Judicial Officers Will Handle 'Chaotic Situation' of Covid in 9 UP Districts
Allahabad High Court termed the situation in major cities of Uttar Pradesh as “very chaotic” due to the Covid surge and issued orders for judicial officers to be appointed as nodal officers in nine worst-hit districts who will report every weekend about the prevailing situation.
According to a report by Indian Express, the court said that “those in power must shun the attitude of ‘my way or no way’ and should welcome suggestions from all the quarters.”
The Allahabad High Court had last week directed the Uttar Pradesh government to close all establishments in cities like Prayagraj, Lucknow, Varanasi, Kanpur and Gorakhpur till April 26 in the wake of a worrisome surge in the number of Covid-19 cases across the state.
Coming down heavily on the Yogi Adityanath government for its handling of coronavirus situation in Uttar Pradesh, the High Court had said, “If popular government has its own political compulsions in not checking public movements during this pandemic, we can not remain mere passive spectators. Public health is the topmost priority and call of the moment and any complacency of any degree today will cause havoc to people. We can’t shirk away from our Constitutional duty to save innocent people from the pandemic which is spreading due to the negligence of a few.”
In its hard-hitting order, the high court bench also slammed the “VVIP culture”. “If things are not arrested to give some respite to medical and paramedical staff, the entire system would collapse and relief will be confined to VIPs and VVIPs,” it said.
The High Court also took judicial notice of a news article in the Hindi daily ‘Amar Ujala’ that 135 students, ‘shiksha mitras’, and investigators appointed to election duty died during the state’s Panchayat elections due to Covid-19.
Hearing a PIL the court directed the state election commission to “take immediate measures in remaining phases of panchayat elections to ensure Covid guidelines are compiled with, else action would be taken against officers involved in the election process.”
The Allahabad High Court issued a show-cause notice to the Uttar Pradesh State Election Commission, asking it to explain why it failed to enforce Covid protocols during Panchayat elections and prosecute those responsible for such violations.
“It appears that neither the police nor Election Commission did anything to save the people on election duty from getting infected by the deadly virus,” the order said.
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