The owner of a hotel in Bihar moved the Patna High Court on Tuesday contending that his hotel, situated in the state’s biggest hotspot, has been taken over by the government for a quarantine center and he feared damage to or loss of furniture and other items until authorities concerned were made accountable.
The petitioner, Bharat Yadav, owns the White House hotel, situated in the state’s Munger district – the only district in the state where the total number of cases is more than 100.
Mr Yadav’s counsel Ansul argued before the single judge bench of Justice Rajeev Ranjan Prasad that he was not challenging the taking over of the hotel premises, but he has concerns about the furniture and other equipment and accessories which may be lost or damaged because of unsafe keeping.
“The authorities of the state have entered the premises and taken over the same but without preparing any inventory of the articles,” the counsel submitted and prayed for directions to the respondents to do the needful in presence of the petitioner or his authorised representative.
He added that a copy of the inventory be made available to the petitioner and it be ensured that while handing the hotel back to its owner all the items are returned in fine condition.
Appearing on behalf of the state government, Additional Advocate General (AAG) Sarvesh Kumar Singh admitted that the petitioners concerns deserved to be addressed but added that he would need to seek appropriate instructions, especially from the District Magistrate (DM) of Munger, under whose direction the hotel has been taken over.
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