AMAN KUMAR BHARDWAJ Vs. STATE OF HIMACHAL PRADESH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Petitioner, invoking the provisions of Sec. 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (for short "Cr.P.C."), has approached this Court for quashing FIR No. 51 of 2021, dtd. 7/5/2021, registered in Police Station East, Shimla under Ss. 419, 468, 471 of Indian Penal Code (for short "IPC"), Sec. 66(D) of Information Technology Act, 2000 (for short "IT Act") and Sec. 54 of Disaster Management Act, 2005 (for short "DM Act").

(2.) Petitioner is a journalist by profession, who, since 2017, remained associated with various media houses and has been working with Zee Media House since January, 2021 and is posted in Shimla.

(3.) During Covid-19 Pandemic, vide order dtd. 25/4/2021, Government of Himachal Pradesh through Secretary (Health), to the Government of Himachal Pradesh-cum-Mission Director (National Health Mission) had issued an order invoking provisions of Himachal Pradesh Epidemic Disease (COVID-19) Regulations 2020 and The Epidemic Disease Act, 1897 with certain direction to combat and control the spread of Covid-19 Pandemic. Besides other directions, there was a direction that all inter-state movement into the State shall be monitored through registration in COVID e-pass software to monitor compliance with the quarantine requirements and facilitate contact tracing of persons in event of detection of COVID-19 positive cases and, therefore, all persons desirous of entering the State shall register themselves on online software and details of their arrival was to be shared with all concerned for the purpose of quarantine requirement and contact tracing.