New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday slammed the Gujarat government for not implementing the National Food Security Act and wondered whether it was not part of India or wanted to break away from the Union of India.
A Bench of Justices Madan B. Lokur and R.K. Agrawal, hearing a PIL filed by NGO Swaraj Abhiyan seeking implementation of the FS Act also questioned as to what the Parliament and Union Government were doing when the State was not implementing a law enacted by Parliament in 2013. The Act mandates provision of 5kgs of rice/wheat to each member of a BPL family in each every state and Union Territory.
Justice Lokur observed that if Gujarat was allowed to have its way, then other states which are implementing the Act will also stop doing so, citing Gujarat as an example
The NGO has pleaded that the FSA should not be confined only to BPL families but all families living in 11 drought affected states. The PIL alleged that parts of states like AP, Telangana, had been hit by drought and the authorities were not providing adequate relief.
Solicitor General Ranjit Kumar who was asked to collate information from all states/ UTs on the implementation during the last hearing, submitted that Gujarat was one of the States which was not implementing the FSA at all. Annoyed at this submission, Justice Lokur asked the SG, “How can they say it? It is an Act passed by Parliament. You want to break away from the Union of India? Tomorrow, Bihar will say we are not implementing it because Gujarat is not implementing it. Once a law is passed by Parliament. Can the States, say we are not going to implement. What about the Cr.PC. Tomorrow some other States will say we are not going to implement it (CrPC). What is the Government of India doing? What is Parliament doing?
The bench also asked the Centre to collect and collate information from these states on the status of welfare schemes like MGNREGA, National Food Security and mid-day meal and asked it to file an affidavit by February 10 and posted the matter for further hearing two days thereafter.
