HC dismisses plea seeking door-to-door screening for Covid-19

The Bombay high court (HC) on Tuesday dismissed a petition filed by right to information (RTI) activist Anil Galgali seeking directions to the authorities to conduct

The Bombay high court (HC) on Tuesday dismissed a petition filed by right to information (RTI) activist Anil Galgali seeking directions to the authorities to conduct door-to-door screening of citizens to curb the spread of Covid-19. Though the activist cited the successful implementation of the same in Bhilwara district, Rajasthan, and Worli Koliwada in Mumbai, the bench held that it was practically impossible to screen all citizens in the city, and hence, could not allow the petition.

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A division bench of chief justice Dipankar Datta and justice AA Sayed, while hearing the public interest litigation (PIL) filed by Galgali through advocates Arvind Tiwari, Devendra Shah, and Atal Bihari Dubey, was informed that the spread of Covid-19 in the city has continued unabated despite efforts by the authorities to restrict it. In light of this, it was necessary to conduct door-to-door screenings of citizens of Mumbai.

The state opposed the same, stating that it was not possible to replicate the Bhilwara model due to the magnitude of the population in the city.

After hearing the submissions, while appreciating the petitioner’s approach, the court said it was not inclined to give directions for door-to-door screening in Mumbai as the population of Mumbai could not be compared to Bhilwara and it was practically impossible to carry out the suggested screening.

“The PIL petition lacks particulars of the population in Bhilwara. It does not even refer to any feature in Bhilwara that is identical or has close resemblance with Mumbai. Having regard to the testing times arising out of the pandemic, resources may be scarce for such door to door testing,” said chief justice Datta.

“Even otherwise, no guidelines and/or advisory of the World Health Organization or the Indian Council of Medical Research have been brought to our notice, which requires the official respondents to carry out door-to-door testing of the residents,” he added.

The court rejected the plea, stating that the PIL petition is “misconceived and is liable to be dismissed”.