Will farmers’ protest be a problem like Tablighi Jamaat, SC asks Centre
[ad_1]
‘Same problem will arise from the farmers’ protest… Don’t know if they’re shielded from COVID-19… You should tells us what is occurring,’ CJI Bobde tells Solicitor General Tushar Mehta.
Chief Justice of India Sharad A. Bobde on Thursday voiced the Supreme Court’s apprehension that mass gatherings of protesting farmers will result in a “problem similar to the Tablighi Jamaat congregation” in March final yr amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Same problem will arise from the farmers’ protest… Don’t know if they are protected from COVID-19… You must tells us what is happening,” Chief Justice Bobde, heading a three-judge Bench, addressed Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, for the Centre.
“We will find out the status,” Mr. Mehta responded.
Also learn | Farmers take out tractor march against farm laws
The courtroom was listening to a petition filed by a Jammu-based lawyer, advocate Supriya Pandita, represented by advocate Omprakash Parihar, searching for a Central Bureau of Investigation probe into circumstances resulting in the swelling of migrant staff, anxious to depart the National Capital for his or her villages and hometowns, on the Anand Vihar Bus Terminal for buses, and the Tablighi Jamaat congregation, which even noticed international delegates attained, in violation of social distancing norms.
Both incidents occurred in March final yr, the identical month which noticed a full lockdown being put in place to stop the unfold of the an infection.
Report on pointers sought
The courtroom issued discover to the Centre and the Delhi authorities. It requested Mr. Mehta to file a detailed report on its pointers to stop COVID-19, together with restrictions on mass gatherings.
When Mr. Parihar submitted that there was “no trace of Maulana Saad”, the chief of Nizamuddin Markaz, the CJI stopped him, saying “we are interested in preventing COVID and compliance of guidelines here… and you are worried about one person”.
The petition accused the Centre, the Delhi authorities and the police of failing to guard the unfold of the virus.
It referred to a March 16 advisory issued by the federal government on social distancing norms.
Also learn: Farmers’ protest | Farmers, Centre reach agreement on two issues
The advisory, the petition stated, “clearly states that religious leaders are to regulate mass gatherings and ensure no overcrowding. At least a metre’s distance between people, non-essential travel should be avoided”.
The petition quotes the advisory, which mandates that “any event (social, cultural, political, religious, academic, sports, seminars and conference) except marriages is restricted to a maximum of 50 persons in the NCT of Delhi till March 31”.
It stated the Prime Minister had introduced the lockdown on March 23. But merely 4 days later “tens of thousands of migrant workers from Bihar and Uttar Pradesh working in Delhi assembled outside Anand Vihar Bus Terminal, elbowing each other to board the first available bus to their hometowns or villages”.
The petition stated 24 individuals who attended the Tablighi Jamaat congregation had examined optimistic.
It stated “ignoring all social distancing norms to avoid the deadly virus, hundreds had been staying in the 100-year-old mosque complex… More than 2,000 delegates, including from Malaysia, Indonesia, Saudi Arabia and Kyrgyzstan, attended the congregation”.
