STAFF REPORTER
Islamabad High Court (IHC) Friday dismissed a petition against the decision to use three and four star hotels for quarantine purpose in the wake of COVID-19 outbreak and declared it as non maintainable. IHC Chief Justice Athar Minallah, hearing the case, said the government could use even its own house if it was in the larger interest of the public in any emergency situation. This court could not appose the measures adopted for the safety of citizens, he said. The counsel for local hotels Sikandar Bashir adopted the stance that the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) had decided to use the hotels for quarantine. He pleaded that the authority was not authorized to take such a decision. He argued that the private property should not be used for the purpose, expressing his apprehension that who would stay in the hotels after being used for quarantine centre. The chief justice said the government was taking these decisions to safeguard the health and lives of citizens in this crucial time. The court could not interfere in this matter as it was not an expert in dealing with the emergency situations. The bench reserved its judgment on the maintainability of the case and later, dismissed the case.
