Supreme Court disposes of Kerala-Karnataka Border closure case after SG claims that dispute is resolved

After the Centre submitted that the Karnataka-Kerala border closure dispute has been resolved, the Supreme Court today disposed of the matter.At an earlier hearing, the Court had urged the two states to amicably resolve their issues concerning the border blockade that choked the free flow of vehicles carrying essential items and patients in the midst of the COVID-19 outbreak..Karnataka had moved a writ petition in the Supreme Court against a April 1 order of the Kerala High Court by which the state borders were directed be opened. Karnataka was apprehensive about the influx of Coronavirus infected persons into the state from Kasargod district in Kerala..Breaking: Kerala v. Karnataka Border dispute amid Coronavirus Lockdown reaches Supreme Court.On April 3, the Supreme Court Bench of Justices L Nageswara Rao and Deepak Gupta urged the states to not confront each other in the midst of an unprecedented public health crisis..Karnataka vs. Kerala dispute on opening borders amid COVID-19: SC favours amicable resolution, directs not to precipitate issue for now.Instead, it asked the Chief Secretaries of both states to sit with the Union Health Secretary and iron out a solution. Meanwhile, the Apex Court urged Kerala not to take any precipitative action based on the High Court order..In today's hearing, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta informed the Bench headed by Chief Justice of India SA Bobde that the Union Home Secretary had convened a meeting with the Chief Secretaries of Kerala and Karnataka. He said that "both states have consented" and that the dispute has ceased to exist.."Agreement arrived at parameters and protocol for passage for urgent medical treatment at the interstate border at Palapadi was arrived at," SG Mehta said to the Court..At the outset of the hearing, CJI Bobde stated that the Court was "not criticising the government."."Have you felt that the Court is criticising the government? Because we have said you have done a good job," said CJI Bobde..After being updated about the developments of the meeting, the Court disposed of the matter..Karnataka, which imposed the blockade, justified that its border was sealed to “combat the spread of the pandemic by preventing the movement of people from the bordering districts of Kerala to Karnataka”..However, Kerala in its counter affidavit had claimed that close to eight lives were lost due to such blocking of interstate borders. It also claimed that this was resulting in a steep increase in the prices of essential commodities..Read Order