New Delhi: Taking note of the 700 deaths due to the intense cold wave that swept the entire North India, the Supreme Court on February 17 issued notice to the Centre and 13 states in a public interest litigation alleging that lives were lost due to failure of governments to provide shelter and relief.

A Bench comprising justice S Rajendra Babu and justice Ashok Bhan issued notices on a petition filed by two persons, who requested that their names be not mentioned in the list of cases or in the court orders, so that they do not get any media publicity.

The states to which notices were issued are – Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, National Capital Territory of Delhi, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand and Uttaranchal.

The petitioners sought a direction from the court to the Centre and the states to take immediate steps to provide shelter, food and warm clothes to the homeless, who spend the nights on the pavements.

It alleged that so many deaths due to cold wave were on account of the failure on the part of the state governments to honour the fundamental right of the citizens under Article 21, which guaranteed right to life.

The petitioners said the object of the filing of the petition was to make the states come out with a plan of action to prevent deaths due to cold wave in future.

PTI