In Brief

During the COVID-19 pandemic's early stages in March 2020, the Supreme Court took suo motu notice of the acute health crisis facing Indian prisons. With an average occupancy rate of 117.6% nationally and some states exceeding 150%, the Court found prisons posed a severe risk for rapid viral transmission. The Court invoked the emergency provisions of the Epidemic Diseases Act, 1897, and issued notices to all States and Union Territories requiring them to justify why preventive directions should not be issued and to submit detailed plans for quarantine, screening, and medical care for prisoners and juveniles within one week, appointing senior counsel as amicus curiae to monitor compliance.

The lawyer headnote and full judgment text are available to registered users.