Delhi High Court on Friday dismissed the petition filed by actor Juhi Chawla against the 5G rollout in the country, adding that the lawsuit was filed to garner publicity. The court also imposed a fine of Rs 20 lakhs on actor Juhi Chawla and others who had filed the petition, observing that the petitioner had abused the process of law by circulating the web link of the hearing on social media websites.

The counsel, appearing for the Centre, said the 5G policy did not fall in the category of public nuisance and it was obviously not prohibited in law.

The counsel representing private telecom companies said that launching of 5G technology is a policy of the government and as it is a policy, it cannot be a wrongful act.

According to PTI, Chawla's counsel had argued that if the telecom industry’s plans for 5G come to fruition, no person, animal, bird, insect and plant on earth will be able to avoid exposure, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, to levels of RF radiation that are 10x to 100x times greater than what exists today.

“This suit will reveal a complete sell-out by the regulatory agencies who, statutorily, have been tasked to protect the health and life of the public, but whose actions reveal an utter derogation of their own statutory duty in order to advance private interests...," the plea alleged.

“Since ‘prevention’ is well-accepted to be far better than ‘cure’, immediate measures must be taken to protect humanity and the environment, in accordance with ethical imperatives as well as formal international agreements, before such harm is actually unleashed," it said.

The plea also said that in April 2019, Brussels became the first major city in the world to halt any further steps in the 5G rollout on account of health hazards. “In fact, as recently as on May 5, 2021, the Parliament of Belgium, still not willing to allow 5G rollout in Brussels, invited 45 ordinary citizens drawn at random to address it on their concerns, assuring them that the 5G roll-out will not be permitted till they are heard by Parliament and their concerns are properly and fully addressed," the plea said.

The court noted that the plaint was defective and not maintainable. Moreover, the court ruled that Chawla did not comply with the mandate under Section 80 of the Code of Civil Procedure. It said that the plaint was not verified.

Chawla and others had contended in their petition that it was an established fact that there “could be danger of imminent nature” due to the 5G rollout. The Centre, however, argued that the suit was not maintainable in view of Sections 80 and 91 of the CPC.

Delhi HC proceedings disrupted by unidentified man after Juhi Chawla shares the weblink of hearing on her social media accounts

As the Delhi High Court began hearing a lawsuit filed by Bollywood actress Juhi Chawla against the implementation of the 5G technology on Wednesday, an unidentified man entered the online hearing disrupting the proceedings. The man interrupted the hearing several times by singing songs from the movies of the actress.

The interruptions had started immediately after the proceedings in the court had started, with the man repeatedly asking “where is Juhi ma’am. I can’t see Juhi ma’am.” As the court was talking about not receiving notes by email from the petitioner’s lawyer, this was ignored by the court.

As the proceeding in the case moved forward, the man started singing songs from Juhi Chawla’s movies. As a result, the court asked the officials to mute them.

The High Court has now directed the police to identify the individuals who disrupted the hearing of the plea by Juhi Chawla.

Juhi Chawla files lawsuit against 5G technology

Bollywood Actress Juhi Chawla had filed a lawsuit against the implementation of 5G technology in India on May 31. According to the actress, if 5G technology were to be installed, then people and humans will be exposed to radiofrequency radiation (RF) at a rate of 10 times or 100 times the current figure.

Juhi Chawla said in a statement, “We are not against the implementation of technological advancements. On the contrary, we enjoy using the latest products that the world of technology has to offer, including in the field of wireless communications. However, whilst using the latter kind of devices, we are in a constant dilemma, because after doing our own research and studies regarding the RF radiation from wirefree gadgets and network cell towers, we have sufficient reason to believe that the radiation is extremely harmful and injurious to the health and safety of the people.”