The High Court also did not agree with senior advocate Rahul Mehra’s claim that the media played “mischief”, saying “the media is not wrong”.
The Delhi High Court on Tuesday took strong exception to media news reports that on its request the Delhi government has ordered that 100 rooms at Ashoka Hotel — a five star facility, be set aside for Covid Health Centre (CHC) for judges and judicial officers of the court and their family members.
“This is very misleading. The High Court has not made any such request for allocation of any beds in any five-star hotel. There was absolutely no communication in this regard,” a Bench of Justice Vipin Sanghi and Justice Rekha Palli said.
“We have made inquiry from the Registrar General of this Court as to whether a request for setting aside rooms in the Ashoka Hotel or any other hotel had been made to the GNCTD… We are informed that no such request has been made in respect of any hotel, much less Ashoka Hotel,” the court remarked.
Issues notice
“It appears that the GNCTD, on its own, has proceeded to issue the order dated April 25 purporting to set up and set aside 100 room at Ashoka Hotel,” the court said while issuing notice to the Delhi government.
The High Court also issued notice to “Ms. Geeta Grover, Incident Commander/SDM, Sub Division Chanakyapuri, who has issued the order”.
Senior advocate Rahul Mehra, representing Delhi government, submitted that this was not the only hotel which has been converted to extended Covid hospital. “There are 25 other hotels which has been converted,” Mr. Mehra said.
The Bench, however, remarked that the issue was with regard to April 25 order which says that the hotel was being converted to extended Covid hospital “at the request of the High Court”.
As per the order, the Primus Hospital will run the Covid Health Centre facility at Ashoka Hotel. The hotel staffers will be provided with protective gear and given basic training. All the services, including rooms, housekeeping, disinfection and food for the patients will be provided by the hotel.
In view of the rising number of COVID-19 cases and in order to augment COVID-19 hospital bed capacity, the Delhi government had, on April 14, issued another notification converting several hotels in the Capital as extended Covid hospitals.
