JUDGMENT :

Siddhartha Varma, Ajit Kumar, JJ.

1. In conducting hearing of this PIL in online mode, we have heard Sri Manish Goyal, learned Additional Advocate General assisted by Sri A.K. Goyal, learned Additional Chief Standing Counsel, Sri Tarun Agarwal, learned counsel for U.P. State Election Commission, Sri S.P. Singh, learned Additional Solicitor General of India, Sri Ashutosh Mishra, learned counsel appearing for the High Court and on behalf of the Nodal officers appointed by the District Judges, Sri Amrendra Nath Singh, learned Senior Advocate and President of Allahabad High Court Bar Association, Sri S.C. Pandey, Sri Anuj Singh, Sri Raghav Dwivedi, learned Advocates and Sri Utsav Mishra, 3rd Year B.A. L.LB. Student of Law, Sharda University, Greater Noida.

2. Reports sent by respective Nodal officers appointed by District Judges under our last order, are taken on record. Affidavit filed on behalf of the State Election Commission UP is also taken on record. An application addressed to the Chief Justice and sent on our official mail ID by one Utsav Mishra is also treated as a miscellaneous application in the present PIL and, accordingly, is taken on record. An intervener application filed by one Pal Singh Yadav is granted. Office is directed to allot regular number to both the above applications.

3. Sri Manish Goyal, learned Additional Advocate General appearing on behalf of the State prayed for two days further time by means of a miscellaneous application to comply with our last order dated 27th April, 2021. He submitted that a comprehensive affidavit was under preparation to bring about the desired informations and action taken on what had been directed vide paragraph 26 and 16 respectively of our last order.

4. Notwithstanding the above request made for adjournment to bring on record a compliance affidavit, Sri Goyal submitted that Government was quite conscious and worried for the current Covid surge and accordingly had not only decided for two days weekend curfew but even extended it until the coming Wednesday. He submitted that the government would not leave any stone unturned to curb the present surge of pandemic as it was quite alive to the alarming situation, but is even committed to wipe off the Corona virus i.e. Covid-19 from the State by carrying out massive vaccination drive on a war footing in the days to come. He admitted that the weekend curfews fetched encouraging results as Covid graph was flattened now and further extension of curfew to week days would possibly be able to break the chain. Besides that it was argued that government was seriously working on the modalities to raise the currently existing public health infrastructure in the state to meet the demand in the days to come. He submitted that the police was also doing commendable job in ensuring compliance of social distancing and masking up of faces by the people and the results according to him were also very encouraging.

5. We do appreciate that the government ultimately realised the importance of putting in lock down to the public movements in general and decided to impose full day and night long curfew for consecutively five days (Saturday to Wednesday) as we had also directed in our earlier order dated 19th April 2021 for five days long restrictions on public movements. We are of the view that government would take such further steps in future also so that not only people but our day and night toiling front Frontline Corona warriors and workers both in medical lines and civil and police administration get some respite from this current surge of pandemic to serve people in a better way.

6. Since Sri Goyal has sought time to file a detailed affidavit, we are not referring to various reports submitted by the Nodal Officers in this order and will deal with those reports in the next hearing that will be held on 7th May, 2021.

7. Sri Amrendra Nath Singh, learned Senior Advocate and President of Allahabad High Court Bar Association, Sri Raghav Dwivedi, le