Rajasthan High Court Issues Notice On Plea Seeking 50 Lakh Ex-Gratia For Private Doctors Who Succumb To Covid-19

A Single Bench of Justice Sanjeev Prakash Sharma has fixed the case for hearing on July 7.

The petition has been filed by the wife of a practicing Homeopathic doctor who succumbed to Covid-19 infection last year. She has stated that her husband was constrained to keep his Clinic functional throughout the lockdown in view of guidelines issued by the Centre as well as Rajasthan Government.

It is stated that he served his patients during the pandemic and while doing so, contracted the infection and consequently succumbed to it in August 2020.

"After demise of her husband, petitioner and her only son is facing deeply penurious situation, which cannot be expressed in words. She is entitled to be compensated by the Government of Rajasthan by making her ex-gratia payment," the plea states.

It refers to an Order dated April 11, 2020 issued by the State Government declaring ex-gratia compensation for the families of contractual employees (sanitation workers, health workers), Home Guards, Asha workers, Anaganvadi workers, etc., who die succumb to Covid-19 while discharging their duties to prevent corona infection.

The Petitioner seeks inclusion of all private doctors, whether Allopathic or Homeopathic or Ayurvedic under the said scheme, more so, when the same has been extended to ration dealers and accredit journalists vide order dated March 25, 2021.

"Doctors, irrespective of the fact whether they work in public sector or private sector or they run private clinics or dispensaries are prone to infections, therefore their families are required to be protected… They cannot be left high and dry in the hours of crises on the premise that they are not employed with the Government," the petition avers.

It is stated that exclusion of private doctors and their families from the aforesaid benefits is absolutely unreasonable, grossly irrational and per se discriminatory making it violative of Article 14 and Article 21 of the Constitution of India.

"That, health care facilities imparted by the state, though huge, is unable to cater each and every citizen, which is palpable from burgeoning fatalities due to Covid-19. In such circumstances, private medical practitioners are accessible to citizens, which makes former vulnerable to infection. In such circumstances, families of private doctors cannot be denuded of the benefit of ex-gratia payment or compensation in event of death of private practitioner due to Covid-19 more so when even 'ration dealers' and 'accredited journalists,' who have no nexus with the treatment of patients, have been brought in purview of order dated 11.4.2020," the petition states.

Petitioner was represented by Advocate Sunil Samdaria.

In related news, the Bombay High Court recently held that private practitioners who opened up their clinics during the pandemic from the fear of FIRs being registered against them for disobeying the civic chief's directions would not be eligible for the Rs. 50 lakh compensation under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Package (PMGKP) if they succumbed to the virus unless they were specifically assigned to treat Covid-19 patients. 

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