Dismissing a special leave petition (SLP) filed by the Manipur State Government, the Supreme Court on Tuesday, 7 September said that the high courts were bastions of ensuring justice during the pandemic.
“Our High Court's were bastions of ensuring that justice was done during the COVID 19 pandemic,” Justice DY Chandrachud orally remarked, as per Live Law.
The Manipur State Government had, in their SLP, challenged a high court order in which the state government had been directed to frame exhaustive rules for the State’s work towards fighting COVID-19. The matter had been listed before a bench of Justices DY Chandrachud, Vikram Nath, and Hima Kohli.
What Else Did the Supreme Court Say?
Pointing out that “your standard quarantine centres were pahetic”, and that there were no separate washrooms for men and women, and healthcare workers did not change the beddings regularly, Justice Chandrachud went on to say:
“The High Court has passed a calibrated order. We are not going to give you a character certificate.”
Background
The Manipur High Court had, in its order dated 16 July, directed the state government to create a “Committee of Experts” that may hold regular deliberations with all stakeholders and advise the government on actions to be adopted to prevent COVID-19 spread.
Further, the Court had pointed out that, faced with the COVID crisis, the government needs to formulate two plans: short-term plan and long-term plan.
(With inputs from LiveLaw.)
(At The Quint, we question everything. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member today.)