Thread by @lawbarandbench

#SupremeCourt to continue hearing the plea seeking disclosure of data related to vaccine trials and declaring #COVDVaccineMandates as #Unconstitutional

State of Tamil Nadu: state has the power to issue vaccine mandates under the National Disaster Management Act. Unvaccinated people are the reason for vaccine mutation.

Tamil Nadu: State has the power to contain disasters and as per Disaster Management Act, state has the statutory power, Centre had asked us to ensure that 100 percent people are vaccinated.

TN AAG Amit Anand Tiwari: unvaccinated people cause serious health risks and serious economic impact. in the second wave there was issues in even finding a bed. This mandate was provided for promoting the larger public interest #vaccinemandate

TN AAG Amit Anand Tiwari: Mandates were precautionary in nature and where there is a health risk it is better to err on the side of caution.

TN AAG Amit Anand Tiwari: My order says that we want to prevent the spread of the virus, the new zealand judgment will have no applicability in this case

TN AAG Amit Anand Tiwari: To say that state is denuded of making any mandate since its violative of fundamental rights of individuals is not a correct thing to say. Implementation of the mandates are not so strict now since numbers are coming down

TN AAG Amit Anand Tiwari: Govt should have power to issue such mandates and there cannot be a blanket ban.

Maharashtra Advocate General Rahul Chitnis: People commute long distances in local trains here where maintaining 6 feet distance is not possible. Here vaccine plays an important role as faces usually touch in such packed trains.

Maharashtra AG: For using public transport in such big cities, such mandates are necessary.

Chitnis refers to the EP Royappa case judgment to state that the #vaccinemandate was not manifestly arbitrary.

Guru Krishna Kumar for Bharat Biotech - we were established way back in 1996. it has alleged that studies of Phase III trial data has not been published. it was published in Nov, 2021 in Lancet.

@BharatBiotech : the allegation that studies are not there in peer reviewed journals does not stand for a fact. The matter would have to be considered in the backdrop of 180 crore doses administered.

@BharatBiotech : Any regulatory responses, response from public or govt has to be looked in the backdrop of this severe pandemic for the first time in 100 years. Proof of pudding lies in the eating. ill affects of further variants is now getting diminished.

@BharatBiotech : Petitioner says ask them to furnish entire trial data. This is by a domain expert who may have some curiosity but that cannot be the alibi to ask for such details and make such sweeping prayers/ please look at mischief it will create

@BharatBiotech : Petitioner concedes that we may have some proprietary right over the data. Larger public interest would be that substantial number of population has been vaccinated. this is an attempt to release a cat among the pigeons.

@BharatBiotech: Such anti vaccine campaigns are there in foreign and will only create mischief leading to chaos.

@BharatBiotech : Prayers are fraught with mischief. I adopt all the confidentiality arguments made by Solicitor General Tushar Mehta.

Serum Institute of India: I will not repeat any of the points. Regarding vaccine trial data, a peer reviewed publication has carried my data in Nov 2021 by Lancet. As a matter of principle they have no locus to ask for data, the data is with the regulator as it should be

SII: There is no overriding public interest here. Regulator has to have the data. Proof is in the pudding and several hundred millions have been vaccinated and we have supplied our COVID vaccine to 272 countries. I am the largest manufacturer today

SII: Without any reasoning asking for my data makes no senses. This is an infructuous petition.

Matter to resume post lunch Adv Prashant Bhushan to commence his rebuttal

#vaccinemandate

Adv Bhushan begins rebuttal: If I am COVID recovered and vaccinated even then I will be at equal risk of transmitting it to others If i am infected again. If vaccination is not helping in reducing the transmission then it is my decision to get vaccinated or not

Adv Bhushan: It is my decision and it is my life. Serological survey shows that more than 80 percent of Delhi's population have had the infection. Mere assertion by the govt is not enough if I have produced evidence.

Bhushan: Vaccine mimics a natural infection. there is no scientific journal in this world which disputes this proposition.

Adv Bhushan: Prof Aditi Bhargava had stated that comparing polio vaccine to COVID vaccine was like comparing apples to oranges. SG Mehta relied on a lot of judgments dealing with small pox etc.

Adv Bhushan: The trial of COVAXIN had to go on for December 2022 but was terminated in January 2021.

Adv Bhushan: None of the vaccines except one has been given emergency license and that is also not being used because in case of mishap it can be used

Adv Bhushan: I have filed a 40 page rejoinder note to the oral submissions made by Solicitor General Tushar Mehta.

Bhushan: Bhushan: Here the manner of emergency approval of Covaxin by the SEC shows that the SEC did not look at the trial data before granting emergency use approval.

Bhushan: if one peruses the SEC meetings and recommendations available on the website show that the SEC changed its mind about Bharat Biotech’s Covaxin within a span of two days. NTAGI is not even given the data... this is the high level authority

Bhushan: the pathetic standards of approval granted for drug manufacturing is encapsulated in the parliamentary standing committee report.

Bhushan: people of this country has a right to know what is happening with these authorities. In SP Gupta in fact it was held that people have the right to know even the correspondence between CJI and law minister regarding appointment of judges

Justice BR Gavai: you are in rejoinder Mr Bhushan. You are citing an order of March 6, 2022. The other party will not get a chance to rebut this

Bhushan: I had already cited this as news article, now i have got the order and will submit it.

Bhushan: SG Mehta was not correct in arguing that no where in the world is such data not disclosed. Law in EU shows how global jurisdictions encourage disclosure of data in these case. No issue of privacy here. Just redact and black out the names.

Bhushan: Astrazeneca or COVISHIELD in Europe has caused 2,44,603 adverse events in 69 million doses, which translates to approx. 1 adverse event per 282 doses. This only points towards callousness on part of Central govt #vaccinemandate

Bhushan: It is very clear from data that the people who have had infection is immune to are-infection. Vaccine is only mimicking a part of the virus and when you get the whole infection you have the whole virus and thereby you develop all necessary anti bodies.

Bhushan: Govt has not filed one paper which rebuts this contention and hardly any paper which rebuts the proposition submitted here. the virus is rapidly mutating. nothing has been shown by govt to rebut this.

Justice LN Rao: what are you driving at ?

Bhushan: they cannot issue vaccine mandates

SC: They are not

Bhushan: states are

SC: so we have to judge how far these vaccine mandates are reasonable

Justice BR Gavai: states like Madhya Pradesh etc have withdrawn

Justice Rao: you don't want mandate for vaccination saying they are not forcing vaccines. you are on restriction by some state governments

Bhushan: yes they are restricting even public place entry

SC: Whether you are vaccinate or non vaccinated you can get infected. So are you okay with producing documents showing that you are tested and you dont have COVID

Bhushan: yes provided the disease is known to be lethal.

SC: There is BA.2 variant round the corner

Bhushan: requirement to get tested every time you step out it will be disproportionate. But if it is lethal like small pox then it is a different issue. for those I can understand but COVID mutates very rapidly.

Govt or their experts may claim anything but they have not produced evidence. But I have proven evidence.: Bhushan #VaccineMandate

How will any Independent Scientist examine whatever they have claimed. They have only made claims. Atleast segregated trial data has to be submitted: Bhushan #vaccinemandate

Justice BR Gavai: Here also no one has been imprisoned?

Bhushan: but if they dont allow me in public places

Justice Gavai: Mr Chitnis just argued that it is only public transport

Bhushan: it is incorrect. it includes public places as well

Justice Rao: 5 lakh deaths have occurred, is this not a lethal disease? It might not be like small pox but so many people have died.

Bhushan: for a healthy person it is not lethal and lethal only for an unhealthy person

Bhushan: they have issued a mandate which is clearly disproportionate.

Bhushan: these are experimental vaccines and the long term effects are still unfolding.

Justice BR Gavai: they have not said courts should not exercise judicial review power they only asked us to go slow. I don't think the Learned Solicitor will make such an argument

Bhushan: that is what the impression I got that SG says there are technical areas and thus let Govt experts look into this and court court cannot look into this

SC: We will have to examine which opinion of the expert can be accepted.
#VaccineMandate

Bhushan: i have produced evidence

Justice BR Gavai: we have heard this from you a one dozen time

Bhushan: this is arbitrary

Justice Gavai: yes yes illegal, arbitrary etc etc #vaccinemandate

Justice L Nageswara Rao: Judgment reserved.

SG Tushar Mehta: Please allow me to file a two page note of legal submissions

Adv Bhushan laughs

Bench rises

#vaccinemandate #supremecourt