New Delhi: The Supreme Court today stayed the Allahabad High Court order imposing Covid-19 curbs in five cities in Uttar Pradesh – Prayagraj, Lucknow, Varanasi, Kanpur Nagar, and Gorakhpur – till 26 April.
The apex court also asked the Yogi Adityanath-led State government to submit before the Allahabad High Court within one week its various steps and measures taken to control the pandemic.
Additionally, the top court has appointed senior advocate PS Narasimha as amicus curiae in the matter. The next hearing will take place after two weeks.
Mentioning the matter for the Uttar Pradesh government, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta today told the Court,”we have done a lot of things and many things have to be done. We are not going into merits but please allow circulation today since five cities are involved.”
When the matter was taken up for hearing at around 12:30 pm, SG Mehta submitted that lockdown in the five cities by judicial orders may not be the correct approach.
The Court ultimately decided to grant an interim stay on the High Court’s directions to the State government.