HC seeks report from Centre on essential goods' supply to

The Calcutta High Court on Saturday directed the Centre to immediately file a report on the supply of essential goods to Andaman & Nicobar Islands during the 21-day lockdown prompted by the coronavirus outbreak. The court asked the Union of India and the Andaman & Nicobar Islands administration to file reports on the prevailing situation by March 30 through email.

A division bench comprising Chief Justice TBN Radhakrishnan and Justice Dipankar Datta also constituted a monitoring committee and directed it to report to the court on the situation with regard to supply of essentials, including foodgrains and medicines. The judges of the division bench took up the matter and passed the order through video conferencing from their residences, Calcutta High Court Registrar General Rai Chattopadhyay said.

The functioning of the Andaman & Nicobar Circuit Bench of the Calcutta High Court has been suspended from March 25 to April 9 in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak. The court took note of a letter by an advocate which was treated as a petition. It invoked extraordinary jurisdiction in view of the extraordinary situation pointed out in the petition.

The letter claimed that restrictions on essentials was imposed from March 14 in the Union Territory, where all kinds of goods are transported from the mainland. The division bench directed the committee to make an overall assessment of all relevant factors including supply of essential commodities, medicines, fuel and availability of other support mechanisms for the people of Andaman & Nicobar Islands.

It asked the committee, headed by the district judge, with the judicial secretary, the superintendent of police, South Andamans and the president of the Bar Association, Port Blair, as members, to file its first report by March 30 through email. Giving regard to the exigencies of circumstances, the court directed that the proceedings of this case will continue utilising WhatsApp, e-conferencing and email as modes of communication and judicial management for the time being.

The letter petition by lawyer D C Kabir alleged that the Union Territory administration was not following central guidelines on the lockdown by disallowing grocery and other shops selling essentials and petrol pumps from remaining open. Claiming that a virtual curfew has been imposed in the islands, he wrote that the Port Blair Municipal Corporation has come up with home delivery options of essential foods items and medicines, while wondering as to what plans have been put in place for immediate supply of similar items to the several other inhabited places in the archipelago.

Passing the order, the division bench observed that "provisions to support cohesive and comprehensive deliverance of matters connected with life is among the guarantees, including fundamental rights, in the Constitution". Taking note of the state of affairs in the UT, the court observed that access to justice is multifaceted assistance to the people and is not confined to mere access to courts.

"It spreads out and trickles down multifarious inalienable necessities for human existence and environment management. "It would appear that there are orders issued by the administration for smooth distribution of essential commodities and medicines to the island. However, we need to find out as to what is happening on the ground," the bench said.

The committee, which came into force upon issuance of the order, will "not only ensure access to justice for all but also act on behalf of the court and report on the ground realities." The division bench will take up the matter again for hearing on March 31..

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)