Team Code: PIL-18

IN THE SUPREME COURT OF GOTHAM

1st ILNU-PIL Drafting Competition, 2020

Sanitize and Stay Hygienic (SASH) Vs The Republic of Gotham and Ors.

PIL Title- COVID-19 and Government Failures.

 IN THE SUPREME COURT OF GOTHAM

[EXTRAORDINARY WRIT JURISDICTION]

WRIT PETITION (CIVIL) NO.___________OF 2020

[UNDER Article 32 of the Constitution of the Republic of Gotham read with Order
XXXVIII, Rule 12 (1) (d) & (2) of The Supreme Court Rules, 2013]

IN THE MATTER OF PUBLIC INTEREST LITIGATION:

Sanitize and Stay Hygienic (SASH) ………Petitioner

Versus

1. REPUBLIC OF GOTHAM
THROUGH CHIEF SECRETARY
MINISTRY OF HOME AFFAIRS

2. REPUBLIC OF GOTHAM
THROUGH SECRETARY
MINISTRY OF HEALTH AND FAMILY WELFARE

3. REPUBLIC OF GOTHAM
THROUGH SECRETARY
MINISTRY OF AYUSH ………Respondent

WRIT PETITION UNDER ARTICLE 32 OF THE CONSTITUTION OF REPUBLIC

OF GOTHAM SEEKING A WRIT OF MANDAMUS OR ANY OTHER
APPROPRIATE WRIT, ORDER, OR DIRECTION TO THE RESPONDENTS AND
OTHER APPROPRIATE MUNICIPAL AUTHORITIES AND LOCAL SELF-
GOVERNMENT AUTHORITIES TO ENSURE THE RIGHT TO LIFE OF THE
CITIZENS BY CURBING THE SPREAD OF COVID-19 PANDEMIC
To,
The Honourable Chief Justice of Gotham and his Brother Judges,
(The Most Honourable Supreme Court of Gotham)
Your most exalted and honourable lordships,
Most humble petition u/s 39(i) of the CrPC 1973.

MOST RESPECTFULLY SHEWETH:

1. The present Writ Petition under Article 32 of the Constitution of the Republic of
Gotham has been filed by the Petitioner seeking directions ensuring protection of the
Right to life of Citizens of Gotham during the present COVID-19 pandemic which
has led to complete lockdown in the country.

2. The present petition has been made by the Sanitize and Stay Hygienic (SASH),
seeking to take a legal action against the Government’s non-fulfilment of duties. It has
been working for the welfare of the citizens in the country and the guarantee if the
rights of persons under the break of the COVID-19 pandemic.

3. Respondent No. 1 is the Republic of Gotham, Ministry of Home Affairs, which is the
apex authority of the Government of Gotham at the national level to formulate
policies, sponsor and support programmes, coordinate activities of various Central
Ministries, State Governments and other nodal authorities and monitor the
programmes concerning all the issues of home affairs in the country.

4. Respondent No.2 is the Republic of Gotham, through Secretary, Ministry of Health

and Family Welfare. Respondent No.2 is responsible for formulation of health and
policy research, and presently for coordination of all efforts for combating public
health concerns as the imminent spread of COVID-19.

5. Respondent No.3 is the Republic of Gotham, through Secretary, Ministry of AYUSH.

Respondent No.3 is responsible for formulation of policies related to AYUSH and is
involved in research and development in relation to the COVID-19 pandemic. It has
 propagated and provided assistance in awareness campaign in relation to the
pandemic.

6. Brief facts leading to the filing of the present Petition are as follows:

I. A novel virulent disease with pneumonia like symptoms, caused by the severe
acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), was identified in
Springfield, Divided States in 2019. The disease being identified and first
transmitted between the local population of Divided States, the disease has
become global pandemic, causing widespread disruption of economic
activities and public life, including imposition of nationwide lockdowns in
most of the countries of the world.

II. The World Health Organization designated the disease COVID-19, which
stands for Coronavirus disease 2019. It has been identified as a serious global
health hazard owing to its rapid spread and increasing death rates around the
world. Research has led to the recognition that the virus spreads from humans
to other humans through respiratory droplets generated during coughing,
talking, sneezing and even regular breathing. The virus has been known to stay
alive for 14 days. The infection leads to pneumonia and acute respiratory
distress. As of today, there is no prescribed treatments or vaccinations for the
virus. Factors such as other physical ailments, old age or infancy, and inability
to afford or accesses healthcare drastically increases the Risk of Mortality.

III. In order to combat the virus outbreak in the country the ministry of home
affairs issued guidelines on 24.03.20 exercising the power given in the
Disaster Management Act, 2005 which specified that all the Government
offices, commercial and private establishment, Transport services, Industrial
establishments, Hospitality services, Educational Institutes,
entertainment/Political, religious gatherings would remain suspended and the
exception being the hospitals and related industry units and essential facility.
This measure was taken to ensure that people are not assembling in public
 places for any instance which if allowed puts public at high risk to be infected.
The guidelines are annexed hereto and marked as Annexure- I. This
Lockdown has further been extended and the revised guidelines was issued by
ministry of home affairs on 15.04.20 which furthers working of certain
agricultural and other industries in order to maintain an economic balance. The
revised guidelines are annexed hereto and marked as Annexure- II.

IV. The Petitioner here is filing the present petition as he is concerned with the
non-fulfilment of duties which the Government towards the public health.
Article 38 of the Indian constitution guarantees state shall promote the welfare
of the people and this cannot be achieved without having a healthy population
as health is the important aspect of welfare and also right to health under
Article 21- Right to Life being the fundamental right. In the present situation it
is observed that there are no proper quarantine facilities, PPE kits, or other
medical facilities. Further in the case of Paschim Bangal Khet Mazdoor
Samity & Others Vs State of West Bengal & Others it was held that in a
welfare state, primary duty of the government is to secure the welfare of the
people and more over it is the obligation of the government to provide
adequate medical facilities for its people.

V. Presently, due to shortage of PPE kits and bad quality of the kits there are
Doctors and nurses testing positive. According to the data provided by the
health ministry as on April 3rd, 2020 it reflects as many as 50 cases of medical
staff testing positive for the virus. This could have been avoided if there were
proper facilities and PPE kits provided to the Doctors and Nurses. The lack of
facilities poses as a great risk to the life of those who are regarded as ‘Second
Gods to Mortals’, annexed hereto and marked as Annexure-III is the data
provided by the health ministry suggesting numbers of medical staff infected
till now.

VI. The Petitioner submits that it has come to light that the civic hospitals had
prescribed Anti-Malarial drug for their health workers in order to protect them
from covid-19. It was stated by the workers that they did not receive their third
 dose of the drug due to the shortage of drug. Annexed hereto is Annexure-IV
newspaper article on workers complaining about shortage of Anti-Malarial
drug. And on the other hand, the Government had allowed the same Anti-
Malarial drug to be exported to U.S and various other neighbouring countries
like Nepal, Brazil etc. It is noted that during the pandemic, there was acute
insufficiency of drugs to the citizens of Gotham and the drugs were shipped to
other countries. This has just put the life of the tax-paying citizens life at
jeopardy. This reflects lack of planning and enforcement by the Government.
Annexed hereto is Annexure-V newspaper article Anti- Malarial drugs being
shipped to U.S on Trump’s request.

VII. The Petitioner submits further that the Epidemic Diseases Act, 1897 needs to
be amended as the act does not provide sufficient guidelines to handle the
present grave situation. This act is a colonial act more than 100 years old. The
act lacks the provisions for a mechanism to decide when an immediate action
needs to be taken during an outbreak and also specific parameters which will
act as a guidance for the Government in assessing at what juncture it should
take cognizance of epidemic diseases.

VIII. The Petitioner submits that the Government did not take appropriate measures
to avoid events like that of Tablighi Jamaat wherein foreign nationals from
various countries assembled in India in the first week of march and visited
various places in the country assembling people to attend the event. The main
contention being all these foreign nationals had tourist visa but had come for a
religious activity which requires separate Missionary visa. Annexed hereto is
Annexure- VI Guidelines of Granting visa and different categories of Visa.
Further the Malaysian Government on Feb-28, 20 identified a Tablighi Jamaat
event as a Covid-19 hotspot and everyone had prior knowledge about the
headquarters of Jamaat being Delhi. Hence, it was highly likelihood for the
event to happen in Delhi but the authorities did not take any measures to stop
the gathering. The gathering did not even come to the notice even after
Nizamuddin Markaz being located in central Delhi where exists a police
station beside the Markaz. This shows it was pure negligence by the
Government. Even after it came to the notice of Government still, they did not
 evacuate them and screen instead, they waited them to agree for the same
when the government had all the powers to stop the same under the Guidelines
issued under DM act, 2005. This event not only shows the failure of
Government in execution of the regulations but also is one of the major
reasons for the virus to have spread to different places. The ministry updated
that the doubling of the cases accelerated from 7.4 days to 4.1 due to the
jamaat event in Nizamuddin. Annexed hereto is Annexure VII news article
indicating the number of increase in covid-19 patients mainly due to jamaat.

7. That the Petitioner is therefore constrained to approach this Hon’ble Court on the
following grounds amongst others, which are being taken without prejudice to one
another.

GROUNDS

A. Because, the Government has declared a Lockdown in the whole country to

curb the spread of Corona Virus and recognized it as a pandemic.

B. Because, it has been established that the Corona Virus is highly infectious and
is a major threat to the lives of Mortals.

C. Because, every Citizen of the Republic of Gotham is entitled to the Right to

Life as guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution of Gotham.

D. Because, in order to curb the spread of this deadly virus within the
community, the COVID-19 protective gear/PPE has been recognized as the
basic necessity for all those who may be exposed to the said virus.

E. Because doctors and nurses being exposed to the high risk of the infection are
not provided with the COVID-19 protective gear/ PPE and are made to risk
their lives and the lives of their family and others.

F. Because the epidemic diseases act,1897 does not state the time juncture at
which an epidemic need to be taken as a life-threatening disease.
 G. Because even after the social distancing norms where made there was no
proper execution of it which led to the increase in the number of cases.

H. Because when the Doctors and Nurses complained about the problems faced it
was ignored and the authorities made them shut their mouth by threatening
which goes against their right.

I. Because Anti- Malarial drug which is critical precautionary measure from

Covid-19 is not available to the citizens but is being shipped to other countries
to save the international relations instead of people.

J. Because Government was negligent in the Tablighi Jamaat event at

Nizamuddin which led to a surge in the number of case in short time.

8. The petitioner craves leave to plead and refer to additional grounds at the time of
hearing.

9. The petitioner has not moved/ approached to government authority for the relief
sought in the petition. The Petitioner has no other alternative and efficacious remedy
but to approach this Hon’ble Court.

10. The Petitioner has not filed any other Petition either before this Hon’ble Court or any
High Court seeking the relief sought in the present petition.

11. The present Petition is filed bona-fide and in the interests of justice.
 PRAYER

It is therefore most humbly prayed that this Hon’ble Court may be pleased to:

a) Issue a writ of Mandamus or any other writ directing the Respondents to direct the
State to draft Strategies for Social distancing measures at Schools, Workplaces and
public places including Courts.
b) Issue a writ of Mandamus or any other writ directing for the amendment to be made to
the Epidemic Diseases Act, 1897 by calling upon suggestions from various
organizations and experts.
c) Issue a writ of Mandamus or any other writ directing Respondents to not lift the ban
on the export of Anti-Malarial drug i.e. hydroxychloroquine.
d) Issue a writ of Mandamus or any other writ directing Respondents to form a
committee under the Epidemic Diseases act, 1897 which will assess the PPE kit
requirement for the Doctors and nurses.
e) Issue a writ of Mandamus or any other writ directing Respondents to issue
notification for Army deployment in the areas where violence is being exhibited by
people towards the healthcare workers and other officials.
f) Issue a writ of Mandamus or any other writ directing Respondents to set up a helpline
portal comprising of psychiatrist and psychologist specifically to resolve the mental
distress being faced by people because of the lockdown.
g) Pass any other order that this Hon’ble court may deem fit in the facts of present case.

FILED BY:

Advocate on Record for the Petitioner

PLACE: Ahmedabad
DRAWN AND FILED ON:
17th APRIL, 2020
 IN THE SUPREME COURT OF GOTHAM

[EXTRAORDINARY WRIT JURISDICTION]

WRIT PETITION (CIVIL) NO.___________OF 2020

IN THE MATTER OF PUBLIC INTEREST LITIGATION:

Sanitize and Stay Hygienic (SASH) ………Petitioner

Versus

The Republic of Gotham and Ors. ………Respondent

LIST OF DOCUMENTS

List of Annexure Subject Matter

Annexure- I. Guidelines issued by ministry of home affairs
on 24.03.20
Annexure- II Revised guidelines issued by ministry of home
affairs on 15.04.20
Annexure-III Data provided by the health ministry
suggesting numbers of medical staff infected.
Annexure-IV News article on workers complaining about
shortage of Anti-Malarial drug
Annexure-V News article Anti- Malarial drugs being
shipped to U.S on Trump’s request.
Annexure- VI Guidelines of Granting visa and different
categories of Visa.
Annexure VII News article indicating the number of increase
in covid-19 patients mainly due to ‘Jamaat’

FILED BY:

Advocate on Record for the Petitioner

PLACE: Ahmedabad
DRAWN AND FILED ON:
17th APRIL, 2020

IN THE SUPREME COURT OF GOTHAM

[EXTRAORDINARY WRIT JURISDICTION]
 WRIT PETITION (CIVIL) NO.___________OF 2020

IN THE MATTER OF PUBLIC INTEREST LITIGATION:

Sanitize and Stay Hygienic (SASH) .………Petitioner

Versus
REPUBLIC OF GOTHAM & Ors. .……..Respondents

AFFIDAVIT
Under: -
1. That I am the Petitioner in the above noted petition and being well conversant with
the facts of the case, I am competent to swear this affidavit before this Hon’ble Court.
2. That the contents of para 1 to para 11 of the accompanying petition have been drafted
by my counsel under my instructions and believed to be true.
3. That the Annexures to the writ petition are true copies of their respective originals.
4. That the Petitioner has not preferred any similar or other petition in the above
mentioned matter.
5. That I have gone through the Supreme Court (Public Interest Litigation) Rules and do
hereby affirm that the present Public Interest Litigation is in conformity thereof.
6. That I have no personal interest in the litigation and neither myself nor anybody in
whom I am interested would in any manner benefit from the relief sought in the
present litigation save as a member of the General Public. This Petition is not guided
by self-gain or the gain of any person, institution, body, and there is no motive other
than of public interest in filing this petition.
7. That I have done whatsoever inquiry/ investigation which was in my power to do, to
collect all date/material which was available and which was relevant for the court to
entertain the present petition. I further confirm that I have not concealed in the present
petition any data/material/information which may have enabled this court to form an
opinion whether to entertain the petition or not and / or whether to grant any relief or
not.
8. That the contents of the above paragraphs of the affidavit and the contents of the
Petition/Application(s) herein above have been read over to me and the same has been
well understood by me.
 Deponent

VERIFICATION: -

Verified at New Delhi on this 16th day of April 2020 that the contents of my above
affidavit are true and correct and no part thereof has been concealed.
Deponent