New Delhi: Taking strong exception to the Delhi government order reserving 100 beds at the five-star Ashoka Hotel in Chanakyapuri for judges and other judicial officers and convert it into a Covid care facility, the Delhi High Court on Tuesday said that it has not made any such request and that the same was "very misleading".
Taking suo motu cognisance of media reports which stated that on the request from the Delhi High Court, the Delhi government has ordered that 100 rooms at Ashoka Hotel to be set aside for Covid Health Centre (CHC) for judges and judicial officers of the court and their family members, the division bench of Justices Vipin Sanghi and Rekha Palli lashed out at the Delhi government, saying, "This is very misleading. High Court has not made any request in this regard".
The court further clarified that all it wanted was a facility for hospitalisation of subordinate judicial officers who have been holding physical courts. The court further said that two judicial officers have already died as a result of Covid-19.
"All that we wanted was in case they need hospitalisation, that facility should be given. It has translated into this order...what is the projection? That it is to benefit ourselves or that you have done to appease us?"
However, senior advocate Rahul Mehra, appearing for the Delhi government, told the court that it was the "mischievous role" of reporting my media.
"This is not only one aspect. Entire hospitals in Aerocity has been converted for such context," he submitted, adding: "SCBA had also written to the CJI to convert the new building for law officers. The intention is good intention and not malafide intention".
"Can we as an institution say that you create a facility for us...such and such beds for us. Would it not be patently discriminatory? Media is not wrong...order is wrong," the bench noted.
"You are passing orders left, right and centre without meaning to do anything about it...we have not even asked for it. That hospital has no manpower, no equipment, no ventilator, no medicines…" the court further observed.
The order pertaining to the reservation of 100 beds at the five-star hotel was passed by Geeta Grover, Incident Commander/SDM, Sub Division Chanakyapuri on April 25.
The court issued notice to her and Delhi government in the matter which will now be taken up for hearing on April 29.
The Delhi government later on Tuesday issued directions to withdraw an administrative order to set up a 100-room COVID care facility for Delhi High Court judges, staff and their families in a five-star hotel, hours after a bench of the court said it had not requested for such a facility.
Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia in a late night tweet said that the direction was issued to withdraw the order to set up a COVID care facility for judges at the Ashoka Hotel.