New Delhi: The Uttarakhand high court on Thursday criticised the state government for not ensuring that COVID-19 protocols are being followed in religious places like Kedarnath and Badrinath, news reports said.
According to Bar and Bench, the court made these observations after it came across videos on social media showing a large number of priests moving around in pilgrimage centres in Badrinath and Kedarnath without wearing masks and social distancing.
A bench of Chief Justice R.S. Chauhan and Justice Alok Verma said that the blatant violation of social distancing norms during these religious gatherings have caused embarrassment to the state.
“First we make the mistake of Kumbh Mela, then there is Char Dham. Why do we repeatedly cause embarrassment to ourselves?,” the chief justice asked, as per the report.
However, a state tourism department representative told the court that for each place of worship, there are earmarks to ensure distancing, to which the court responded saying that there are videos showing violation of COVID-19 norms on social media.
“Nobody is following your earmarks. Please take a chopper to Char Dham, you will find what the reality is. Please take next chopper to Char Dham, go to Kedarnath…” the chief justice said.
The court lashed out at the state government saying the government should be asking these questions to the violators instead of the court.
“We cause embarrassment to ourselves. The rest of the country is saying why can’t Uttarakhand learn? I feel embarrassed when colleagues call me and ask what is happening in the state… You can fool the court, but you cannot fool the people, the reality exists out there… you are playing with the lives of millions of people in the country,” the chief justice said.
The matter will be heard on June 9.
The Char Dham yatra which was scheduled to start on May 14 was suspended due to the rising number of COVID-19 cases in the state. The four pilgrimage sites are Badrinath, Kedarnath, Yamunotri and Gangotri in Uttarakhand. The government allowed only the priests and related traditional right holders inside the shrines.
Last month, the Uttarakhand high court had asked the state government to come out with standard operating procedures for Char Dham and said that the opening of the four pilgrimages couldn’t be permitted as it would become another hotbed for COVID-19 infections like the Kumbh Mela.
The Kumbh Mela was attended by millions and thousands of cases were recorded as COVID-19 protocols were being openly flouted.
The chief minister himself repeatedly told people that the Kumbh was safe to attend, until it became very clear that was not the case.