: The Punjab and Haryana high court has quashed a criminal case registered against Haryana doctors found partying during Covid-19 induced restrictions in May 2021.
The FIR was quashed as complaint in the case, which ought to be filed by district magistrate (DM), was made by the police itself.
The FIR was registered on May 30, when on a tip off, police conducted a raid at a hotel named Crown Plaza Crown Inn and found some persons partying in a room.
As per police, lock down was in place due to the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic and prohibitory orders against opening of hotels and assembly of people were also issued by the district administration.
They were booked under the provisions of Disaster Management Act, 2005 and violating the order promulgated by the district magistrate. In all, police had named eleven persons in the FIR, including hotel owner Mukesh Pahwa, Piyush, Chandni, Pawan, Shaifali, Vikram, Jyoti Sunny, Ritu Rohit and Jyoti. Two of them who had approached the high court were doctors working in Sonepat.
Seeking quashing of FIR, they had argued in the high court that they had come to Rohtak to meet their colleagues and they got late and thus thought of staying in some hotel and booked rooms opposite to the hospital for over-night stay.
{{/usCountry}}Seeking quashing of FIR, they had argued in the high court that they had come to Rohtak to meet their colleagues and they got late and thus thought of staying in some hotel and booked rooms opposite to the hospital for over-night stay.
{{/usCountry}}It was also argued that as mandated, the FIR should have been filed on the complaint of the DM. The petitioners were not found to be infected with Covid-19 virus. There was also nothing to show that they committed any unlawful or negligent act that was likely to spread the Covid-19 virus.
The high court bench of justice Karamjit Singh took note of submissions that the FIR was not lodged on the complaint of DM, who was competent to make a complaint to prosecute the petitioners.
There is no prima facie evidence indicating that petitioners were suffering from any infectious disease or tested Corona positive at the relevant time. So, it could not be assumed that they were either the carriers of infection or would have caused the spread thereof, the bench said adding that it also appeared that there was no intention on their part to spread the disease to another person.
“…the petitioners were simply found present in a private hotel and they have explained reasons for their presence in the said hotel,” the bench further recorded, quashing the May 30, 2021 FIR and consequent proceedings. ENDS