SC to hear tomorrow plea seeking directions to Centre for measures to overcome financial stress faced by borrowers

The Supreme Court will hear on Friday a petition seeking a direction to the Centre to take effective and remedial measures to redress and overcome the financial stress and hardship faced by the borrowers of the country during the second wave of Covid-19 and lockdown.

A Bench of Justice Ashok Bhushan and Justice MR Shah will be hearing tomorrow the Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by advocate Vishal Tiwari.

The PIL filed sought direction to the Centre to permit all the lending (financial) institutions to grant interest-free moratorium period for term loan and defer the payment of loan installments for a period of six months or till the situation from Covid-19 normalises.

Tiwari, in his PIL also sought a direction to the government to direct that any bank or financial institution shall not take action for auction in respect of any property of any citizen or person or party or any body corporate for a period of six months.

The plea further sought direction that no account shall be declared as non-performing asset (NPA) for a period of six months, keeping in view the surge in the second wave in the Covid-19 pandemic.

During this surge in the second Covid-19 pandemic wave, it is required that government should take every possible measure to keep the living of the citizens comfortable and easy, plea added.

"Their financial burden should be decreased and citizens shall not lose their dignity. Financial policies are made by the government but in the present time above financial policies, the question is of survival. And the population of our nation shall survive with dignity and without any stress," the petition said.

Since the time of emergence of Covid-19 in India, the country has witnessed numerous havoc in the form of a medical emergency, economic distress due to the subsequent lockdown to reduce the transmission rate of Covid-19 in India, the petition said.

"As corona has brought disaster, so the lockdown is also proving a disaster for the economy," the plea added.

( With inputs from ANI )