Lt Governor's 5-day mandatory quarantine order done away with: AAP govt to HC

The AAP government on Tuesday told the Delhi High Court that the Lieutenant Governor's order on mandatory five-day institutional quarantine for asymptomatic COVID-19 patients has been replaced, which makes the PIL challenging it infructuous. Taking note of the submission, a bench of Chief Justice D N Patel and Justice Prateek Jalan said the grievances raised in the plea have been brought to an end by the latest Delhi government order of June 20 which replaced the L-G's June 19 direction for mandatory five-day institutional quarantine for asymptomatic COVID-19 patients.

The court said if the petitioner, Nancy Roy, was aggrieved by the latest order she can challenge it before the appropriate forum and disposed of her plea. The petition had challenged L-G Anil Baijal's June 19 order for a five-day institutional quarantine for all asymptomatic COVID-19 patients or those with mild symptoms in place of home isolation.

The petition had termed as a "harsh direction" the L-G's order and said it amounts to forcing patients to undergo five-day institutional quarantine, specially when the government is unable to provide adequate number of beds and nurses to patients who are in dire need of hospitalisation. Baijal had also ordered that after the five-day institutional-quarantine, asymptomatic patients will be sent for home isolation.

On June 20, the L-G's direction was substituted by the Delhi government's order which did away with the mandatory five-day institutional quarantine for asymptomatic patients. According to June 20 order, all persons testing positive for coronavirus would be referred to COVID care centres where their clinical condition, severity of illness and presence of co-morbidities would be assessed.

At the same time presence of adequate facility for home isolation of such individuals would also be assessed, the order said. It further said that if home isolation facility is available, there are no co-morbidities and patient does not require hospitalisation, he or she will have option to either stay at the COVID centre or at home. However, others who have co-morbidities and/or lack home quarantine facility, will have to stay at the COVID care centre, the June 20 Delhi government order also said.