HC frowns over lack of medical facilities court complex

Delhi High Court today expressed dismay over the absence of basic facilities, like ambulance and stretchers, to deal with emergent medical situations.
The issue had cropped up after a lawyer had suffered cardiac arrest in the high court last week and died after reaching the hospital.
A bench of Justice B D Ahmed and Justice Ashutosh Kumar asked a petitioner journalist, Pankaj Yadav, to move an application highlighting all facts with regard to basic infrastructure needed to avoid such incidents in future.
Yadav had sought directions to remove posters and hoardings from the high court complex, allegedly put up by lawyers. In his plea, he had also sought directions to improve civic amenities in trial court complexes, including Tis Hazari, as well as making them disabled-friendly.

The petitioner informed the bench that one of the lawyers who suffered cardiac arrest could not reach hospital on time as the ambulance reached the spot after half an hour.
The bench gave the directions after it was also told that even the doctors in the high court premises were not available on time so that the lawyer's life could be saved.

The bench also directed the high court's Registrar General to immediately remove all posters and hoardings in an around the court complex.
"The Registrar General shall ensure that the hoardings and posters in an around high court complex be removed forthwith," it said.

Meanwhile, the bench which had disapproved "defacement" of Tis Hazari court complex building walls by posters put up by advocates and vendors prior to the Bar elections, said it was not satisfied over the report filed by the authorities concerned.
It said though most of the posters have been pulled down, the remaining should also be removed "forthwith", and Delhi government's public works department shall whitewash the walls of the Tis Hazari court complex.