Allahabad High Court
Jamirul Nisha vs State Of U.P. Thru. Prin. Secy. ... on 17 July, 2023
Bench: Vivek Chaudhary, Manish Kumar
HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT ALLAHABAD, LUCKNOW BENCH
?Neutral Citation No. - 2023:AHC-LKO:46448-DB
Court No. - 3
Case :- WRIT - C No. - 28763 of 2021
Petitioner :- Jamirul Nisha
Respondent :- State Of U.P. Thru. Prin. Secy. Panchayat Raj Lko. And Ors.
Counsel for Petitioner :- Afzal Hasan,Ramzan Ali Khan
Counsel for Respondent :- C.S.C.,Ghaus Beg,Rohit Tripathi
Hon'ble Vivek Chaudhary,J.
Hon'ble Manish Kumar,J.
1. Present writ petition has been preferred by petitioner for quashing of the impugned order dated 22.06.2021 passed by the Committee presided by the District Magistrate, Bahraich rejecting the claim for granting ex-gratia amount/benefit to the family of the deceased employee died on duty during Covid-19 as it is barred by one day.
2. Learned counsel for petitioner has submitted that husband of petitioner was posted in education department on the post of head master and serving at Prathmik Vidyalaya Jokaha, Salaarpur Block Risiya, Bahraich, District Baharich. During the gram panchayat elections which were held on 21.04.2021, he was appointed as Returning Officer at Shankar Inter College situated in Block Balaha Nanpara, District Bahraich. On 24.04.2021, the husband of petitioner was tested and found positive for corona and due to which he expired on 24.05.2021. Petitioner's son has apprised this fact by submitting an application to District Magistrate claiming ex-gratia benefit provided by the State Government vide Government Order dated 01.06.2021 providing ex-gratia payment Rs.30,00,000/- to the family of the employee who had expired due to Covid-19 while the employee was on election duty.
3. It is further submitted that the Committee by its impugned order dated 22.06.2021 has rejected the claim of petitioner on the ground that the claim has been filed on 31st day whereas it has to be filed by 30th day. It is further submitted that the said controversy/issue has already decided by Hon'ble Court in a bunch of writ petitions by judgment dated 25.07.2023, leading petition of which is Writ-C No.28249 of 2021; 'Kusum Lata Yadav Vs. State of U.P. and 4 Others'. The Hon'ble Court allowed the writ petitions where death occurred beyond a period of 30 days.
4. On the other hand, learned counsel for respondents has submitted that as per the Government Order dated 01.06.2023 any death that has occurred beyond the period of 30 days from the date of election duty is not related to elections, however, he has fairly conceded that the said controversy/issue has been decided by Division Bench of Hon'ble Court, relied by learned counsel for petitioner.
5. After hearing counsel for parties, going through the record and the judgment passed in case of Kusum Lata Yadav (supra), it is found that the State Government issued a government order dated 06.04.2021 which was clarified by Government Order dated 01.06.2021 decided to compensate for the loss and life of an employee sent on election duty to the dependents with a payment of Rs. 15 Lakhs which was enhanced to Rs.30 Lakhs to overcome the hardships of the pandemic victim. The issue relating to claim of dependents of the pandemic victim who had expired beyond the period of 30 days has been finally adjudicated by this Court in case of Kusum Lata Yadav (supra) and in paragraphs 18, 20 and 27 the Court held:-
"18. The bar of 30 days period in the cases where infection was detected within 30 days of election duty but death occurred beyond the same is not attributable to any negligence on the part of victim that would defeat the claim rather it is owing to the lack of extra ordinary care or treatment of which the duty would lay on the State. Therefore, all the detected cases within 30 days of election duty cannot be segregated from those where the infection despite remaining undetected resulted into the death of a victim due to COVID-19 within the period prescribed i.e. 30 days. Any other principle derived by the State on the basis of scientific understanding is bound to defeat the very object of the Government Order and the purpose will frustrate. It is not necessary for the State Government to ahdere to the strict scientific principles in the matter of situations which went beyond the control of scientific means, therefore, the State Government in its caveat cannot impose an embargo upon the Courts of law to construe the scope of policy strictly within the scientific principles.
20. This Court would thus reject the argument of the State to approach the issue at hand purely on the basis of scientific principles as portrayed on the strength of some publication in the Lancet Journal and expect the State to implement the impugned clause of Government Order dated 1st June, 2021 without discriminating between the deaths of asymptomatic and symptomatic cases on the yardstick of 30 days from the date of election duty. It must be read beneficially for those cases too which were detected within 30 days and in that event, the date of death would become immaterial once it is on account of COVID-19.
27. As a result, all the writ petitions except Writ-C No. 3276 of 2022 (Smt. Khushboo v. State of U.P. and others) are allowed and the opposite parties are directed to release the ex-gratia payment to the dependents entitled thereto within a period of one month failing which the claims so allowed shall be made good inclusive of simple interest @ 9% p.m. from the date of judgement upto the date of actual payment."
6. In the facts and circumstances as discussed above that the deceased husband of the petitioner sent on training for the purposes of election duty in Panchayat elections on 24.04.2021, found affected with corona virus and he expired on 24.05.2021, the issue has already been decided by this Court in case of Kusum Lata Yadav (supra) by which the present case is squarely covered and is not disputed by respondents as well, the writ petition is liable to be allowed.
7. Accordingly, the writ petition is allowed. The impugned order dated 22.06.2021 is hereby quashed and as a result thereof, the respondents are directed to release the ex-gratia payment to the dependents entitled thereto within a period of one month failing which the claim so allowed shall be made good inclusive of simple interest @ 9% per annum from the date of judgment upto the date of actual payment.
Order Date :- 17.7.2023
Arti/-
[Manish Kumar,J.] [Vivek Chaudhary,J.]
