Plea In Delhi High Court Seeks Ex Gratia Payment To Families Of Judicial Officers, Court Staff Who Lost Their Lives Due To Covid 19

A plea has been filed in the Delhi High Court seeking ex gratia payment to the kith and kin of judicial officers and members of the court staff in tune of Rs. 1 Crore and 50 Lakhs respectively who have lost their lives due to covid 19 virus. The plea also seeks direction to declare late Kovai Venugopal and Kamran Khan, judicial officers who recently succumbed to covid 19, as frontline workers.

The petition moved by Advocate Tanveer Ahmed Mir states that the respondent authorities have shown "little empathy towards such officers and their kith and kin" who have lost their lives while performingtheir duties without any fail as frontline warriors in the implementation of justice.

The Respondents in the matter are GNCTD, Department of Finance, GNCTD, Department of Home Affairs, Delhi Secretariat, Department of Law and Justice, Delhi and Delhi High Court through its Registrar General.

Stating that at the onset of the covid pandemic last year, when lower judiciary in most parts of the Country was not functioning, the plea highlights that the Delhi High Court as well as the Subordinate judiciary played a pivotal and exemplary role in setting up immediate redressal mechanisms for conducting virtual hearings.

"During this period of time a number of court staff members belonging to the lower judiciary as well as judicial officers got infected but nevertheless attended the court hearings, facilitated the same for the benefit of general public at large." The plea states.

Furthermore, the plea also states that the respondents miserably failed in performing their duties and abdicated their legal, political and social responsibility in protecting the life of a large number of legal professionals, judges and court staff who were at a risk of contacting the covid 19 virus.

"It is submitted that inaction on part of the respondents in providing no guarantees of medical reimbursement of medical expenses incurred at private hospitals at huge unbearable exorbitant rates, is also liable to be struck down and immediate directions need to be immediately passed to instill confidence in the judicial community that all medical expenses would be reimbursed irrespective of whatever hospitals, private, semi-private are used for medical treatment. It is submitted that inaction on part of respondents No. 1 to 4 is in gross violation of the rights of the effected members under Articles 14, 19 & 21 of Constitution of India." The plea reads.

Addressing the deaths of two judicial officers who have lost thier lives due to covid 19 pandemic, the plea seeks the following prayers:

-Issue an appropriate writ, order or direction, holding that Late Sh. K. Venugopal, Ld. Family Judge, Saket District Courts, Late Sh. Kamran Khan, MM, Dwarka District Courts, Delhi lost their unfortunate lives while performing their duties as frontline warriors in the line of duty.

- Issue an appropriate writ, order or direction,directing respondents No. 1 to 4 to immediately and forthwith pay an amount of Rs. 1 Crore each to the kith & kin of the deceased judicial members as an ex-gratia relief.

- Issue an appropriate writ, order or direction, directing the office of Registrar General, Hon'ble Delhi High Court (Respondent No. 5) to immediately collate and place on record the details of the members of other lower judiciary court staff, the court staff of the Hon'ble Delhi High Court who unfortunately may have lost their lives due to COVID-19 while performing their duties and in such cases, direct the respondents No. 1 to 4 to pay appropriate ex-gratia relief to their kith & kin not being less than Rs. 50 Lakhs per officer/employee/court staff and further direct the respondents to provide employment to the next of the deceased on compassionate grounds.

- Issue an appropriate writ, order or direction, directing the office of Registrar General, Hon'ble Delhi High Court (Respondent No. 5) to immediately collate and place on record the details of medical expenses that had been borne till date and would be borne in future by the members of lower judiciary, subordinate staff as well as the court staff of Delhi High Court and to place the same on record before this Hon'ble Court and issue appropriate directions to the respondents to ensure that all such medical expenses would be reimbursed irrespective of the fact whether the patients were hospitalized in empanelled hospitals or other private hospitals.