Ahmedabad: The Chief Justice of Gujarat High Court on Thursday assigned a suo motu PIL and other related pleas about the coronavirus outbreak in the state to a new bench. The earlier bench had passed some strong observations about the state government’s handling of the crisis and especially the conditions at the Ahmedabad Civil Hospital.
Now the cases will be heard by Chief Justice Vikram Nath and Justice JB Pardiwala, said a notification by the HC Registrar. Justice Pardiwala was part of the earlier bench too. Chief Justice Nath also formed another division bench, comprising Justices RM Chhaya and Ilesh Vora, to hear urgent matters through video conference. As per the new roster, Nath and Pardiwala’s bench will hear coronavirus-related petitions through video conference.
The PIL about cooronavirus, initiated by the HC on its own (suo motu) and other similar plea were first assigned to the bench of Chief Justice Nath and Justice AJ Shastri. Then, in the beginning of May, Nath created a new division bench of Justices Pardiwala and Vora. This bench conducted hearings and passed scathing remarks about the way the state govt was handling the pandemic.
In its order on Saturday the bench had said the condition of Ahmedabad Civil Hospital was “pathetic, distressing and painful,” and it was “as good as dungeon”. It was the responsibility of health minister Nitin Patel and senior health department officials to deal with the situation, the bench headed by Justice Pardiwala had remarked. The number of coronavirus cases in Gujarat increased to 15,944 on Friday while the death toll reached 980.
Randeep Singh Surjewala | File Image
Congress attacks Centre for Solicitor General Tushar Mehta’s ‘prophets of doom’ remark in Supreme Court
Our Bureau / New Delhi
A day after Solicitor General (SG) Tushar Mehta told the Supreme Court there were a handful of people — “prophets of doom” — who were always sceptical about everything, the Congress on Friday questioned the apex court’s silence and alleged the government was autocratic in its functioning.
Randeep Surjewala, Congress chief spokesperson, said, “Modi Govt’s ‘New Definitions’ in SC — First, ‘Some High Courts are running a parallel Govt’; second, those criticising the govt are ‘prophets of doom’ and third, cites instance of a journalist as ‘vulture’.” “A prelude to complete ‘Autocracy & Abdication of Constitution’!” Surjewala tweeted.
The Congress leader also questioned the transfer of the bench in the Gujarat High Court. “No wonder the High Court Bench holding Gujarat Govt accountable for abdication of duty & turning the hospital into a ‘dungeon’ is suddenly changed. Can there be a greater ‘travesty of justice’?” Surjewala said. “Why is SC silent on such rank subversion of justice?” he asked.
Kapil Sibal also lashed out at the SG and tweeted, “Sad but true. A law officer in the Supreme Court dealing with the plight of migrants epitomised by the images in the public domain said: Journalists are vultures and High Courts are running parallel governments. This is politics not law!”
