Affixing warning posters outside residence of Covid-19 patients leading to stigmatisation: Supreme Court

The practice of government authorities putting up posters outside the residence of COVID-19 positive patients is leading to stigmatisation of such persons, the Supreme Court observed on Tuesday stating that such patients are many times being treated as "untouchables". .The concerns were raised by a three-judge Bench headed by Justice Ashok Bhushan despite the Central government assuaging the Court that there is no compulsion on State authorities to affix such posters. .Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing the Central government, informed the Court that the Centre has filed its affidavit in the case on November 30 stating that such posters are meant to ensure that nobody inadvertently enters the house of a Covid positive patient. "If a poster humiliates or stigmatises a person then it should be avoided. But if it warns a person from inadvertent entry then it is upto the State government," Mehta submitted. .However, Justice MR Shah, who was on the Bench, stated that "the hard reality is different and many times such people are treated as untouchables.".The Court was hearing a petition filed through advocates Chinmoy Sharma and Puneet Taneja challenging the decision taken by various State governments under the National Disaster Management Act, 2005 to affix posters outside the homes of COVID-19 patients who are in isolation.The plea also assailed the practice of forwarding of names of COVID-19 patients by State health departments to Resident Welfare Associations (RWA)..The hard reality is different and many times such people are treated as untouchables.Supreme Court.It stated that circulation of such names on WhatsApp groups etc is a violation of the fundamental right of privacy and the right to live with dignity as enshrined under Article 21 of the Constitution..It was the petitioner's case that patients who are already undergoing mental trauma and weakness due to COVID-19 are forced to face "stigmatisation by the members of neighborhood and community" due to such practice.Moreover, such posters lead to COVID-19 patients becoming the talk of the community and a topic of "idle gossip", the plea stated.Stating that the decision to affix such posters violates the doctrine of proportionality, the petitioner claimed that such a primitive practice was only carried out in the 18th century during the Plague..The Supreme Court has now asked the petitioner to respond to the Centre's response. The case will be taken up next on November 3.