Court News

```Kerala HC refuses to stay salary ordinance

‘Court can’t question wisdom of govt.’

06/05/2020, SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT ,KOCHI

The Kerala High Court on Tuesday declined to stay the ordinance empowering the State government to defer payment of salary of government employees and other government institutions for six days for five months in view of the COVID-19 crisis.

Justice Bechu Kurian Thomas, while refusing the plea for a stay made by counsel for various service organisations, observed that the court could not question the wisdom of the government in bringing the ordinance which did not appropriate the salary but only deferred payment.

The court also found that the ordinance was enacted under the legislative competence of the government. It was promulgated as the State was reeling under a very difficult situation. The court could not interfere with the ordinance at this stage.

The court said the exclusion of health workers from the ordinance was a matter for the government to consider and take a decision. Merely because the health workers were not exempted from the ordinance was not a ground to issue a stay order.

According to the service organisations, including the Kerala NGO Association, the Kerala Disaster and Public Health Emergency (Special Provisions) Ordinance, which makes for deferment of pay of employees of the government and its institutions in part in the event of disaster and public health emergency in the State was illegal.

Advocate General C.P. Sudhakara Prasad argued that the government had the legislative competence to promulgate the ordinance. In fact, the government did not deduct or reduce the salary and it only deferred payment of salary.```

T’gana extends lockdown till May 29

Hyderabad:  06.05.2020

The Telangana government on Tuesday decided to extend the lockdown till May 29, saying it can’t take the risk by lifting it at a time when the state has made considerable progress in controlling the spread of Covid-19.

CM K Chandrashekhar Rao made the announcement at a news conference on Tuesday following a state cabinet meet. With this, Telangana became the first state in the country to extend the lockdown beyond May 17.

Rao also said while the guidelines issued by the Centre allowing economic activity in orange and green zones will be followed, no activity will be allowed in Hyderabad and other red zone districts except the construction activity. IANS

Visas of those stranded in India extended

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

New Delhi:06.05.2020

The government of India on Tuesday announced extension of grant of consular services to all foreign nationals stranded in India due to Covid-19 lockdown, for a period up to 30daysfrom thedate of lifting of prohibition on outbound international air travel of passengers.

It also decided that all existing visas granted to foreigners except to those belonging to diplomatic, official, UN/international organisations, employment and project categories shall remain suspended till prohibition on international air travel of passengers from/to India is lifted by the Government of India. The MHA, in an office memorandum issued on Tuesday, said in the light of extension of the lockdown until May 17, it had been decided to extend the period of providing the consular services by the office of Foreigners Regional Registration Officers/Foreigners Registration Officers to foreign nationals who have been stranded in India because of spread of Covid-19and also due to travel restrictions imposed by Indian authorities.

“Regular visa, e-visa or stay stipulation, of such foreign nationals whose visas have expired or would be expiring during the period from 01.02.2020 (midnight)tillthedateon which prohibition on international air travel of passengers from India is lifted by the Government of India, would be extended on ‘GRATIS’ basis on submission of online application by the foreigners. Such extensions would be granted for a period up to 30 days from the date of lifting of prohibition on international air travel of passengers from India without levy of overstay penalty. Exit to such foreign nationals, if so requested by them, will also be granted on the same lines,” the ministry directed. Bureau of Immigration was advised to convey the above instructions to all FRROs/ FROs/ Immigration Check Post.

FIRST ROUND OF ADMISSION

362 PG medical, 118 dental seats vacant

TIMES NEWS NETWORK  96.05.2020

Ahmedabad: After first round of admission for colleges offering postgraduate (PG) medical courses, 362 seats remain vacant for MD, MS and PG diploma courses while 118 lie vacant in PG dental surgery. This has necessitated another round of admission.

The first round was done for 1,371 seats for MD, MS and PG diploma courses and 362 PG dental courses by the Admission Committee for Professional Postgraduate Medical Courses (ACPPGMC).

Given the prevailing situation where a nationwide lockdown has been imposed to curb the spread of Covid-19 pandemic, the admission committee had made certain changes in the admission procedure. For form filling process, the selected candidates were required to pay only a part of the admission fees.

Keeping in view the lockdown situation, the committee took permission from the government to allow the candidates to travel with one guardian and a driver to the college allocated to them.

‘It’s safe inside’: Court denies bail to prisoners

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Ahmedabad  6.05.2020

: A local court has denied bail to some prisoners with observation that the prison is a safer place to be than roaming around free in the open during this Covid-19 pandemic, for prisoners are under direct supervision of authorities. Any movement “back and forth” from jail is imprudent.

Mohammed Aziz Shaikh, imprisoned for alleged drug peddling, had urged the court to release him from jail for few days so that ‘his presence in the family will amount to psychological solace to his family’ in the troubled time of pandemic.

Additional sessions judge S D Dave refused him bail but not without a reason that the prisoner is safer in jail. The judge said that the beginning of this century was free from any major international turmoil until Covid-19 gripped the world.

“India is into a lockdown and the human created world is into an impasse. Amidst the standstill of the endless human interaction that envelope the human life, it appears from the application that the applicant presents no extraordinary reason for this court to set him at large on temporary bail with all movements being chilled until the larger human issues resolve,” the court said.

The court further said, “The tenancy of prison will be with a direct supervision of authorities giving a reasonable anticipation for it to be a safer place. Any movement of prisoner back and forth the outside world is imprudent. The difficulties of human life are unending and can find a resolution after the prevailing situation mitigates.”

Besides, the court also took into the consideration the type of offence the prisoner was charged with. Similarly, the same court denied temporary bail to another alleged drug peddlers Abdul Imran Shaikh and Amit Shah, and POCSO accused Shailesh Dholi and Karan Chauhan. They all had put forth Covid-19 pandemic as a ground to go out to help their families.

The applications for temporary bail are heard after the Supreme Court asked the state governments to reduce burden on jails by releasing prisoners in lighter offences during Covid-19 pandemic and nationwide lockdown.

Accordingly, a high power committee recommended a category but offences of only falling under the Indian Penal Code, and not for any special laws.

The tenancy of prison will be with direct supervision of the authorities giving a reasonable anticipation for it to be a safer place, the judge ruled

Crowds throng liquor shops, Andhra ups prices by 50%

New Delhi: 06.05.2020

Undeterred by steep price hikes or the urgent need to maintain distance, impatient crowds were back outside liquor vends on Tuesday, pushing and jostling in many places as they sought to lay their hands on a bottle of their favourite tipple.

A day after lockdown curbs were eased and liquor shops opened across large parts of India, triggering near riot situations, lakhs of people lined up or gathered outside from early morning, counting the hours for the shutters to go up and then more hours till they reached the counter.

The scenes played out in towns and rural centres in states such as Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Maharashtra, West Bengal and Delhi, just as they did on Monday, the fear of Covid-19 eclipsed by the eagerness to access alcohol after more than 40 dry days.

On Tuesday, the Andhra Pradesh government enhanced prices by 50%, over the 25% hike it had imposed the day before. Late on Monday, the Delhi government announced a 70% ‘special corona fee’ on alcohol.

But it clearly didn’t matter much, not to casual drinkers who wanted to stock up their bars and not to the more serious tipplers and addicts reduced to despair without any alcohol. AGENCIES


CAN’T WAIT ANY LONGER

TN to resume liquor sales from tomorrow

The price, whether of premium scotch or wine or of humbler spirits, was of no consequence it seemed.

“It’s not the cost. It’s the availability that matters right now. See the crowd even though the shop has not opened yet,” said Prateek Singh, a student, pointing to the crowds outside a liquor shop in east Delhi’s Shakarpur locality early in the morning.

From the hill town of Nainital came videos on social media of people standing under umbrellas in the hail waiting a suitable distance from each other to get to the liquor shop.

Serpentine lines going round the corner and beyond formed in many parts of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, West Bengal and Maharashtra among other places.

Andhra Pradesh special chief secretary (revenue) Rajat Bhargava said the increase in liquor rates was to “discourage” people from consumption and safeguard health.

And in Kolkata, long queues were seen outside standalone liquor shops with either police or local administration ensuring that tipplers maintain social distancing. In the Karnataka capital Bengaluru, as if proving right the naysayers, drunken brawls claimed two lives.

A man in his mid-thirties was stabbed to death by his friend after an altercation at a party organised to celebrate the resumption of alcohol sale on Monday as part of the easing of lockdown restrictions. In the second incident, a youth was beaten to death by his friend in an inebriated state.

In a bid to reduce the crowds, the Chhattisgarh government launched a web portal for home delivery of liquor in green zones of the state. Meanwhile, the Tamil Nadu government announced resumption of liquor sales from May 7.