The Brihanmumbai MunicipalCorporation (BMC) on Tuesday released a trade union activist who had been "illegally quarantined" by the civic body and the police authorities earlier this month on the intervention of the Bombay High Court.The activist, K Narayanan, was released and allowed to go back to his family after the HC held that he could not be kept in quarantine indefinitely if he had tested negative for coronavirus.Narayanan's counsel advocate Kranti LC said that Justice Revati Mohite-Dere had held that quarantine could not be used as a pretext for keeping one in custody and directed that Narayanan be let out and his belongings be returned.The court was hearing a habeas corpus plea filed by the Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU), seeking the release of Narayanan, a trade unionist.As per the plea, Narayanan was picked up by the police on April 21 while he was distributing food and essential supplies to migrant workers in suburban Andheri.He and his colleagues were carrying some placards and flags as part of CITUs national protest to highlight the plight of migrant workers affected by the COVID 19 lockdown.Advocate Gayatri Singh, the senior counsel also appearing for Narayanan, said that while two of Narayana's colleagues were allowed to go, Narayanan was taken to a private laboratory in Jogeshwari area and tested for COVID 19.He was told that as per the procedure, the result of his test would be sent to him on his phone within the next 48 hours, however, instead of being allowed to go home, the police took away his phone and took him to a quarantine facility."He was asymptomatic, had no history of primary contact with any affected person and had not stepped into any containment zone," she said.On the previous hearing on April 30, the police had claimed that it was the BMC which had detained Narayanan, but the civic body denied any knowledge of the incident.However, on the court's direction, the police had returned his phone and provided Narayanan with fresh clothes.On Tuesday, the BMC submitted that Narayanan had been interned at the quarantine facility at the police's direction.However, he had tested negative for coronavirus and that his quarantine period of 14 days had ended on Sunday, the civic body said.It submitted that Narayanan had been detainedas he had been seen coming out of a red zone area in Juhu and that he was also found to be residing in a coronavirus containment zone.However, since Narayanan had tested negative for COVID 19, he would be "released in the due course of time", BMC had submitted before the court in an affidavit.The HC, however observed that there was no law to keep the activist in continued custody if his quarantine period had ended and ordered that he be released immediately.Justice Mohite-Dere also held that the police had failed to establish any due procedure of law under which Narayanan's phone and other belongings had been confiscated by the police.She disposed of the plea after the civic body assured the court that Narayanan would be permitted to go home immediately.
