Can’t put people of K’taka in lurch: SC

NEW DELHI: Stating that it “will not put the people of Karnataka in the lurch”, the Supreme Court on Friday turned down the Centre’s plea against the Karnataka high court order that has directing it to immediately increase the supply of medical oxygen to the state from 962 metric tonne (MT) per day to 1,200 MT in view of the spurt in the active Covid-19 cases. The state currently has over 517,000 such cases.

“It is a well calibrated and judicious exercise of power by the high court. It is not an arbitrary order but based on adequate reasons... We will not keep the people of Karnataka in the lurch by interfering with this order,” the court said.

Discomfited by the remarks, the Centre retorted that it was willing to “walk out” of the oxygen allocation process if the high courts were willing to decide the quantity of oxygen each state should get.