Gujarat HC bans entry of public, mandates Covid negative report for others

The negative test report of Covid-19 cannot be beyond 48 hours to the date of hearing, and it is also mandatory for all persons entering the court premises to go through screening.

In the wake of increasing cases of coronavirus disease (Covid-19), the Gujarat high court has prohibited entry of litigant public to its premises and also mandated negative test report not beyond 48 hours for others.

The directive by the Gujarat high court has been issued by chief justice Aravind Kumar. (File photo for representation)

In a circular issued on Wednesday, the court said that the new directions have been issued by chief justice Aravind Kumar on the recommendation of the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) committee constituted for the same purpose, according to news agency ANI.

According to the order, the party in-person will only be permitted entry to the court premises after he/she produces a negative Covid-19 test certificate not more than 48 hours to the date of the hearing.

Furthermore, the canteen of the court has also been closed.

It has also been made mandatory to screen all persons entering the court premises, and only individuals found to be asymptomatic will be allowed entry.

“Persons entering the court premises shall strictly follow social distancing and cooperate with the medical screening team,” ANI reported quoting the circular.

Gujarat on Wednesday reported as many as 3,350 fresh Covid-19 cases, with the active caseload of the state touching 10,994. Meanwhile, a total of 50 Omicron cases were detected that shot up the state's tally of the new ‘variant of concern’ to 204. Gujarat is one of the top five worst-affected states in India by the Omicron variant.

Notably, several courts in the recent weeks have shifted to online or ‘hybrid’ hearing - a mix of both offline and online - amid the rising trend of Covid-19 cases in the country owing to the Omicron outbreak.

The Calcutta high court and district courts have been functioning in a virtual mode with certain exceptions since January 3. The Bombay high court also went into hybrid mode from January 4 onwards, and also put restrictions on entry of litigants and lawyers as required, a statement read.

The Supreme Court has also suspended physical hearings for two weeks starting January 3 owing to increasing coronavirus cases amid the Omicron outbreak.