Can government impose restriction on movement?

INTRODUCTION

At the end of December 2019, the first case of the Coronavirus was reported from the Wuhan Municipal Health Commission, China. Subsequently, the virus spreads around the globe. Later on, at the end of January 2020, the first case of the Coronavirus was reported from Kerala. Before this first case, Indians including the citizens and the government were indulged in their work and no one was worried about the same. However, the situation gets in its worst form in just two months. Whereby, the cases increased from one to thousands and the government have no option other than to put the whole nation under the Janta curfew. On the 22nd of March 2020, the Janta curfew was announced and from here the entire citizens were directed to remain in their homes. Furthermore, on the evening of 24th of March, 2020, as per the need of the situation, the ruling government announced the lockdown for twenty-one days whereby it restricted the movement of 1.38 Billion citizens of India. Furthermore, during this time every Everything including Shops and all other services like Flights, Buses, Trains, and all other public transport were on the stand. However, very limited things which include the essential daily goods were permitted which was also subjected to a huge restriction. Moreover, as of the 29th of May 2021, it has affected more than 100 million people and resulted in more than 3.5 million deaths globally. During this time many slogans like ‘Ghar me rahe, surakshit rahe’ were also promoted to tackle this unnatural and unwanted pandemic. In this article, we will see the constitutionality of the Lockdown. Furthermore, we will also see whether the government is authorized to infringe the ‘right to Movement’. 

FREEDOM OF MOVEMENT UNDER ARTICLE 19 OF THE CONSTITUTION

The Supreme law of the land, the constitution of India by virtue of its article 19 gives the right to movement. Article 19 (1) (d) reads as:- Protection of certain rights regarding freedom of speech etc (1) All citizens shall have the right (d) to move freely throughout the territory of India. However, this article is not absolute in nature and the government can impose some restrictions on it. However the same is subject to certain conditions. Article 19 (2 ) authorizes such reasonable restrictions, which reads as:- Nothing in sub-clause (a) of clause ( 1 ) shall affect the operation of any existing law, or prevent the State from making any law, in so far as such law imposes reasonable restrictions on the exercise of the right conferred by the said sub-clause in the interests of the sovereignty and integrity of India, the security of the State, friendly relations with foreign States, public order, decency or morality or in relation to contempt of court, defamation or incitement to an offence. It means that if the restrictions imposed are reasonable and if it fulfills the other conditions it will not be violative of the rights given under article 19 (1) (d). In the current scenario, the lockdown was the need of the hour, and thereby it was reasonable and hence the government action was legitimate.

EPIDEMIC ACT AND DISASTER MANAGEMENT ACT

Epidemic Act is India’s 123- years old law which was formulated pre-independence mainly to control plague in the late 1800s. This act authorizes the central and state government to take special measures to control the epidemic. Section 2 of the act reads as :- Power to take special measures and prescribe regulations as to dangerous epidemic disease.—(1) When at any time the 2 [State Government] is satisfied that 2 [the State] or any part thereof is visited by, or threatened with, an outbreak of any dangerous epidemic disease, the 3 [State Government], if 4 [it] thinks that the ordinary provisions of the law for the time being in force are insufficient for the purpose, may take, or require or empower any person to take, such measures and, by public notice, prescribe such temporary regulations to be observed by the public or by any person or class of persons as 4 [it] shall deem necessary to prevent the outbreak of such disease or the spread thereof, and may determine in what manner and by whom any expenses incurred (including compensation if any) shall be defrayed.

(2) In particular and without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing provisions, the 2 [State Government] may take measures and prescribe regulations for— (b) the inspection of persons travelling by railway or otherwise, and the segregation, in hospital, temporary accommodation or otherwise, of persons suspected by the inspecting officer of being infected with any such disease.

Furthermore, Section 2 A of the said act, talks about the power of the central government, which reads as “:-When the Central Government is satisfied that India or any part thereof is visited by, or threatened with, an outbreak of any dangerous epidemic disease and that the ordinary provisions of the law for the time being in force are insufficient to prevent the outbreak of such disease or the spread thereof, 8 [the Central Government may take such measures, as it deems fit and prescribe regulations for the inspection of any bus or train or goods vehicle or ship or vessel or aircraft leaving or arriving at any land port or aerodrome, as the case may be, in the territories to which this Act extends and for such detention thereof, or of any person intending to travel therein, or arriving thereby, as may be necessary.]

Disaster Management act is an act of 2005. It stipulates the establishment of a National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), State Disaster Management Authorities and District Disaster Management Authorities. It was an special act which was passed with the view to tackle with the disaster including the natural as well as man-made. As per the definition provided under Section 2 (e) of the act, a disaster has been defined :- ‘disaster’ as a catastrophe, mishap, calamity or grave occurrence in any area – arising from natural or man-made causes, or by accident or negligence – which results in substantial loss of life, human suffering, or damage to and destruction of property or the environment; and its nature or magnitude is beyond the coping capacity of the community in the affected area.

Furthermore, the ‘Disaster management’ under section 2 (e) of the act is defined as a continuous and integrated process of planning, organising, coordinating and implementing measures necessary to prevent the danger or threat of a disaster; mitigating or reducing the risk of a disaster or its consequences; capacity-building; preparedness to deal with a disaster; prompt responses to a disaster; assessing the severity or magnitude of a disaster; evacuation, rescue or relief; and rehabilitation and reconstruction.

Moreover, Section 6 and Section 10 of the Act, PM Modi, who is the chairperson of the authority, declared Covid-19 as a national disaster so that the entire country has uniform lockdown regulations, which are easier to implement, especially on which services and functions are allowed and what are not. Like, just before lockdown was imposed to whole India, the state specific lockdowns and a lockdown of 82 districts by the federal government — both under the epidemics law — were inconsistent about the use of private vehicles. Under the Disaster Management Act, states are required to implement the national plans.

CODE OF CRIMINAL PROCEDURE, 1973

It is one of the Prominent acts of which are currently prevailing in India. The code of criminal procedure is procedural in nature except for some sections which are substantial in nature. Section 144 of the code plays a vital role in order to tackle the issues where the administration has to prohibit the gathering of the people at one place. This act also helps in order to tackle the current ongoing pandemic. Section 144 of the code prohibits the assembly of four or more people in an area. The competent authority prohibits any presence or movement of one or more persons in public places or gathering of any sort anywhere, including religious places subject to certain conditions. All movement of one of more persons in the city is prohibited between 9 pm and 5 am at many places.

CONCLUSION

Whether the Coronavirus is a natural virus or it is a man-made virus was a controversial issue, which was a hot topic of discussion among prominent scientists around the globe. However, this controversy doesn’t matter at all, what matters is that this virus has not only disturbed the life of people but also have taken many lives around the globe. To tackle such a pandemic Indian government has restricted the movement of its citizens. At the beginning of this article, we have seen that the question before us was that, whether such restriction imposed was legitimate or do the government has any power to impose such restrictions.

In the light of the above discussion we have seen that there are certain laws including the Code of Criminal procedure, 1973, and some special acts like the Epidemic disease Act, and Disaster Management Act which authorizes the central and state government to impose some restrictions and take some special measures to tackle such natural or man-made disaster. We can defiantly conclude ourselves that the act of the government was the need of the hour and the action taken by the government was as per the laws which are currently prevailing in the nation. Thereby, the act of the lockdown was legitimate and no rights of the citizens have been violated. The action of the government was in the interest of the citizens as well as it was justified too.

The Epidemic Act is a 123-year-old law which was formulated pre-Independence mainly to control plague in the late 1800s. This act authorises the Central and state government to take special measures to control the epidemic. Section 2 of the Act reads as: Power to take special measures and prescribe regulations as to dangerous epidemic disease.—(1) When at any time the 2 [State Government] is satisfied that 2 [the State] or any part thereof is visited by, or threatened with, an outbreak of any dangerous epidemic disease, the 3 [State Government], if 4 [it] thinks that the ordinary provisions of the law for the time being in force are insufficient for the purpose, may take, or require or empower any person to take, such measures and, by public notice, prescribe such temporary regulations to be observed by the public or by any person or class of persons as 4 [it] shall deem necessary to prevent the outbreak of such disease or the spread thereof, and may determine in what manner and by whom any expenses incurred (including compensation if any) shall be defrayed.

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