HC dismisses PIL against wearing masks, litigant lawyer fined

CHENNAI: Madras High Court on Thursday dismissed a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by a lawyer against the state government over its insistence on wearing masks.

Chief Justice Munishwar Nath Bhandari and Justice N. Mala passed the orders on the petition filed by Advocate S.V. Ramamurthy who claimed that wearing masks had adverse effects and that people were not able to inhale oxygen properly.

The petitioner, in his Public Interest Litigation, had challenged a Tamil Nadu government order issued by the state health department on January 12 and another order issued by the Greater Chennai Corporation on July 4 for imposing a fine of Rs 500 for those who did not wear masks.

The court dismissed the petition and imposed costs of Rs 10,000 on the litigant.