"What Is Delhi Govt Doing?": High Court Seeks Govt's Response On Proposal To Make Covid Care Facility Inside JNU

The High Court has sought response of the Delhi Government on its proposal to make a Covid-19 care facility inside Jawaharlal Nehru University after questioning it's conduct for not expediting the proposal even after the lapse of over a month.

Justice Rekha Palli orally remarked, "What is this Delhi Government doing? You then start blaming left right centre."

Advocate Abhik Chimni appearing on behalf of the petitioner submitted before the Court that the Covid-19 numbers are not that much now and so, the process can be taken forward by the RWA also.

On the question posed by the Bench as to what the Government has done pursuant to its last order, Advocate Rizwan appearing for the Delhi Government apprised the Court that although they haven't filed a status report till date, the Government had sent the proposal to the concerned department for setting up the Covid-19 facility. 

"We have already sent the file to health department. The file is pending," he said.

Hearing this, Justice Palli said:

"It is your department. You sent it for approval in June. One month has already passed. They are not doing it means they cannot do it."

However, on the assurance given by the Delhi Government that the action will be taken within a period of 2 weeks, the Court posted the matter on 13 August.

"It's expected that before the next date of hearing, the COVID care centre inside the JNU campus will be operational. Let a fresh status report be filed by both the respondents at least three days before the next date of hearing," the Court said.

The development came on the submissions made by Jawaharlal Nehru University that a site has been identified and inspected for setting up a COVID care centre inside the JNU campus. 

It was also submitted that officials of the COVID Response Team of the University had convened various meetings with the SDM and other officials of the Delhi Government who were taking expeditious steps to make the said Covid care centre operationalized at the earliest.

On the other hand, it was submitted by the Delhi Government that the Dedicated COVID Hospital, required to be attached with the COVID care centre, has been finalized and a communication in this regard has already been sent to the Health Department, GNCTD.

The Court was dealing with a writ petition filed by the Students Union and the Teachers Union at the Jawaharlal Nehru University (hereinafter, "JNU"), as also two Professors who teach at the University seeking various directions to the Respondents including a direction for setting up COVID care facilities in the University Campus, as also a COVID response team, and certain Oxygen facilities inside the University Campus premises.

They argued that due to the outbreak of the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, around the second week of April, the Petitioners wrote several letters to the Registrar of the Respondent University, The Vice-Chancellor of JNU as also the ADM/ SDM of the concerned area seeking immediate intervention.

However, there was no response from any of the said authorities, and on any of the concerns raised by the Petitioners, thus, the petition was filed.

Noting that the COVID Task Force and the COVID response Team is already working within the JNU campus, a single judge bench comprising of Justice Pratibha Singh had issued directions in the matter after observing that setting up a dedicated 'COVID Care Centre' would enable such affected persons to immediately isolate and for their basic parameters to be monitored.

During the previous hearing in May end, the Court had asked the University and Delhi Government to file fresh status report on the progress made in this regard.

The Court had previously pulled up the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) for not reacting with "swiftness and alacrity" as COVID cases continue to rise in a plea filed by students and teachers seeking a COVID care centre as well as oxygen production facilities to be set up within the campus.

Case Title: JNU Teachers' Association & Ors. v. JNU & Anr.