India Tomorrow
NEW DELHI, APRIL 7 – The Supreme Court on Tuesday disposed of a bunch of petitions concerning the Kerala-Karnataka border sealing case after the Union government informed that a consensus had been worked out to allow patients requiring urgent medical treatment to cross the Talapadi border and access the hospitals in Mangaluru.
Appearing before a Bench led by Chief Justice of India SA Bobde, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta said a meeting was held among the Union Home Secretary and the Chief Secretaries of the two States to amicably resolve the crisis. An agreement had been reached on the parameters and protocol for allowing medical patients into Karnataka.
At an earlier hearing, the Court had urged the two states to amicably resolve their issues concerning the border blockade that choked the free flow of vehicles carrying essential items and patients amid the COVID-19 outbreak reports Bar and Bench. Karnataka had moved a writ petition in the Supreme Court against a April 1 order of the Kerala High Court by which the state borders were directed be opened.
On Monday, the Kerala government in its affidavit told the top court that Karnataka’s blocking National Highways and border roads due to coronavirus, preventing people’s access to medical treatment and movement of essential goods, is violative of fundamental rights of the Citizens.
It had said eight lives have been lost till date on account of the blockade of border roads by Karnataka and one person had died after an appeal was filed by Karnataka government in apex court against the High Court order for opening of the borders.
Kerala said that the Union government, under whom the National Highway fall, is duty-bound to issue direction to Karnataka to remove such blockade for transporting patients requiring medical attention as well as essential goods to Kerala.
Karnataka was apprehensive about the influx of Coronavirus infected persons into the state from Kasargod district in Kerala. They had argued that the blockade was put in place in the interest of public health. The situation regarding coronavirus was “really dire”. Kerala was the “worst-affected” State in the country, with nearly 194 coronavirus cases. In this, Kasaragod, adjoining Karnataka, was the “worst-affected” district of Kerala with over a 100 positive cases, it said.
