LHC summons additional Health secretary on plea against political gatherings

LAHORE: The Lahore High Court (LHC) on Tuesday summoned additional secretary Health for December 9 on an application seeking directions for restraining political parties from all types of gathering in the wake of second wave of Coronavirus.

Justice Muhammad Sajid Mehmood Sethi passed the orders on a civil miscellaneous application filed by Judicial Activism Panel (JAP), a public interest litigation firm, in a pending case.

Earlier, a law officer on behalf of the Specialized Healthcare and Medical Education Department filed a reply before the court, wherein it was stated that the mass gatherings could increase the transmission of Coronavirus and the department had already issued SOPs to prevent its spread.

The reply added that political gatherings were categorized as very high risk due to uncertain behaviour of the participants.

Any decision to restrict or proceed a gathering should be based on rigorous risk assessment by the respective public health authorities and others, it added.

The reply stated that it was recommended that such gatherings should not be allowed in districts where the positive test ratio was above five per cent.

The law officer also apprised that necessary facilities were being provided to the COVID-19 patients in the hospitals.

However, the petitioner's counsel Muhammad Azhar Siddique submitted that no senior doctors were available in hospitals during the evening and night besides questioning steps for provision of facilities to the patients.

The court, after hearing arguments of the parties, adjourned further hearing till December 9 and summoned additional secretary Health and an officer from office of the deputy commissioner Lahore.

The petitioner-organisation had submitted that the present Coronavirus situation was out of control as cases of the coronavirus had increased in the country.

Expressing concern over the current COVID-19 situation, it petitioned the court to order the provincial government to implement the Punjab Infectious Disease Prevention and Control Ordinance, 2020 in letter and spirit for the constitutional rights of the citizens.

The court was also requested to restrain all political parties from holding any type of gatherings for next three months at least, besides seeking directions to ensure physical presence of teaching faculty of medical colleges during evening and night and to regulate prices of Covid-19 tests through healthcare commission.