Plea in Supreme Court seeks directions for invocation of National Securities Act against persons involved in hoarding, black marketing
A plea has been filed in Supreme Court seeking directions to the Centre and State to invoke National Securities Act (NSA) against persons involved in hoarding, profiteering, adulteration and black marketing and seize their 100% benami properties and disproportionate assets.
It has been argued that thousands of EWS and BPL citizens died on streets, in vehicles, in hospitals compounds and their homes due to hoarding of hospital beds, adulterated COVID medicines, black marketing of medical equipments like oxygen cylinder and huge profiteering in the sale of life saving injections like Remdesivir, Tocilizumab etc.
“The offenders are emboldened by the paralysis that has gripped many. It’s time the governments show that political will and determination to end the menace and instill confidence in the people that the State will protect them, by framing stringent laws, doing requisite amendments and bringing such offenders to justice.”, the plea states.
The plea preferred by Advocate Ashiwini Kumar states that due to States’ inaction, hoarding of beds, profiteering by private hospitals, adulteration in COVID medicines and black marketing of life saving equipment is at peak.
The petitioner avers that hoarding, profiteering, adulteration and black marketing is not only happening in rural areas but also in metro cities including national capital Delhi and that the quantum of fine prescribed under the Essential Commodities Act is too meagre to have any deterrent effect and sentence is also not enough.
“Due to the gravity of the offence, sentences for hoarding and black marketing are neither stringent nor adequate to tackle these menaces. Due to weak law, the State has totally failed to control hoarding of beds, adulteration of medicines, black marketing of medical equipment and profiteering. And, the result is that thousands of parents lost their young son/daughter and children lost their father/mother”, the plea further states.
The plea refers to the reports submitted by high level committees such as to aver that all of these Committees and the Law Commission in its 29th and 47th report made recommendations for additions of new chapter in the Indian Penal Code to deal with Socio Economic offences but the same suggestions went futile and fell on deaf ears since the expected change and development didn’t happen.
In light of the above mentioned facts, the plea also seeks for declaration of non application of Section 31, CrPC, 1973 to laws relating to Hoarding, Profiteering, Adulteration and Black Marketing and the sentence shall be consecutive and not concurrent. The plea also seeks for issuing directions to the centre to examine the International Laws relating to hoarding, profiteering, adulteration and black marketing and take appropriate steps to insert a Chapter for these offences in IPC and to the Law Commission of India to examine International Laws related to Hoarding, Adulteration, Profiteering and Black Marketing and prepare a Report within three months.