The Supreme Court on Tuesday stated that the COVID-19 situation in the country is not improving, instead, it is getting worse by each passing day.
The bench comprising of Justices R.F. Nariman, Navin Sinha, and B.R. Gavai was hearing a plea for parole extension of Jagjit Singh Chahal (a Punjab based businessman) who is accused in a drug racket case. Subsequently, the court said that in a situation like this, there is no point in overcrowding the prisons when some of the accused are either out on bail or are on parole.
The accused Chahal, a prominent businessman, is also accused in a money laundering case besides being booked for running a drug racket in the state.
The bench perused the affidavit of Punjab government which said that the bail was granted to him in the case on 19th February and his appeal is coming for hearing on 16th July.
“You see, the COVID-19 situation is not getting any better with each passing day. It is only getting worse in the country,” the bench told the Punjab government’s counsel who opposed the plea. “The parole is to continue until the appeal is heard and finally decided provided that the petitioner cooperates and does not ask for any adjournment on any ground when the appeal comes up for hearing. The special leave petition is disposed of. Pending applications stand disposed of,” added the bench.
