The government has withdrawn the clause allowing filing of an FIR against a company and its management if an employee tests positive for COVID-19, following concerns raised by India Inc.
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Information and Broadcasting Minister Prakash Javadekar maintained on Thursday that there was no government directive “for an FIR against a factory.”
“There is no mention of sole responsibility fixed of owner/director on detection of COVID-19 positive case/s,” states the reworked guidelines sent to business owners. “The policy has been revised and the FIR clause removed. All the confusions on this matter should end.”
On Thursday, Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla wrote to Chief Secretaries of all States requesting that the guidelines for lockdown measures “should not be misused to harass the management of any manufacturing/commercial establishment.”
He said some apprehensions had been raised in the media based on a wrong interpretation of the guidelines. It was believed that States may take legal action, including imprisonment of the CEO, if a COVID-19 positive employee was found in the factory, and that in such a scenario the factory would be sealed for three months.
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“I would like to clarify that there is no such clause in the consolidated revised guidelines and therefore there is no basis for such misplaced apprehensions,” the letter said. Mr. Bhalla also stressed that subject to compliance with t