Lt Governor Anil Baijal overrules AAP govt's decision to reserve Delhi govt-run and pvt hospitals for Delhiites

Setting the stage for a confrontation, Delhi Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal on Monday junked Arvind Kejriwal government's decision to reserve city's hospitals only for its residents, saying it is "impermissible", and ordered that treatment is ensured to everyone "without any discrimination".

The order issued by Baijal in his capacity as the Chairperson of Delhi Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) came even as a high-level meeting is scheduled for Tuesday to ascertain whether Delhi has entered the third stage of community transmission of COVID-19.

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Baijal’s order came as there were criticism from several quarters including from Union Minister Mukthar Abbas Naqvi and senior Congress leader P Chidambaram.

Kejriwal sought to find fault with the order saying it has created a "huge problem and challenge" for the people of Delhi. "Providing treatment for people coming from all over the country during the Karona epidemic is a big challenge. May be it is God's will that we serve the people of the entire country. We will try to provide treatment to all."

In his order issued within 24 hours of Kejriwal announcing the move, Baijal cited Supreme Court judgements which stated that 'Right to Health' is an integral part of 'Right to Life' and a Delhi High Court order. The order said that denying patients and medical treatment on the ground of not being resident of National Capital Territory of Delhi is "impermissible".

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All government and private hospitals and nursing homes situated in the NCT of Delhi have to extend medical facilities to all Covid-19 patients coming for monitoring/treatment "without any discrimination" of being resident or non-resident of the capital, it said. The order instructed that treatment is not denied to any patient on the ground of not being a resident of Delhi.

While announcing the decision to reserve treatment in hospitals owned by Delhi government and private sector, Kejriwal had relied on a report by a five-member expert panel and a suggestions received from public.

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The expert panel had said that if people from outside Delhi are allowed treatment in the capital, the hospital beds will be filled within three days. It also said that Delhi would need around 42,000 beds for treating COVID-19 patients by mid-July. Kejriwal also claimed that 90% of people who gave suggestions on the issue favoured reserving the beds for Delhiites.

Questioning the move, Chidambaram tweeted, “Mr Kejriwal says Delhi hospitals are only for Delhiites. Will he please tell us who is a Delhiite? If I live or work in Delhi, am I a Delhiite? I thought if a person had enrolled in Jan Arogya Yojana/Ayushman Bharat, he can seek treatment in any enlisted hospital, public or private, anywhere in India? Did Mr Kejriwal take legal opinion before he made his announcement?"

Naqvi asked how can Delhi's beds be reserved for the people of Delhi alone. "How can Mumbai's beds be only for Mumbaikars? How can Kolkata's beds be only for people of Kolkata? There isn't a requirement of passport and visa to come to Delhi. People from all across the country come to the national capital for treatment. There shouldn't be any politics in this. There is a need for sensitivity," he told NDTV.

CPI issued a statement saying the move was "unconstitutional and goes against the oath of office" Kejriwal had undertaken while assuming charge of the UT as Chief Minister.

Meanwhile, a meeting of the DDMA chaired by Baijal on Tuesday will assess the Covid-19 situation and decide on overhauling the strategy if needed.

Follow: Coronavirus India update: State-wise total number of confirmed cases, deaths on June 8

Sources said the meeting will take a holistic view of the situation and hear health experts to understand the emerging situation.

Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia said the meeting would discuss whether Delhi has entered the third stage of community spread of COVID-19. "If participant experts say there is community spread in Delhi, our strategy will change," Sisodia said.

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, who has gone into self isolation after he developed COVID-19 symptoms, will miss the meeting as he is scheduled to have his Covid-19 test on Tuesday and he has assigned Sisodia to attend the meeting.

Reports of community spread emerged as the national capital opened shopping malls, religious places and restaurants on Monday, following the Centre's 'Unlock 1.0' strategy. Kejriwal has been saying that Delhi cannot be in lockdown for long as it would hurt its economy and result in huge job loss while emphasising that one has to live with the virus.

As on Sunday, Delhi had reported 28,936 cases since the first case was reported on March 2. In June alone, there were 9,092 cases, which is 31.42% of the total cases. In May alone, there were 16,326 cases.