Lawyers as frontline workers for priority COVID-19 vaccination? Former PM Dr Manmohan Singh thinks so

The media was abuzz yesterday over a letter written by former Prime Minister of India Dr Manmohan Singh to incumbent Prime Minister Narendra Modi offering his suggestions on ramping up vaccination to fight the COVID-19 pandemic..Dr Singh's letter included a suggestion to leave it to the discretion of state governments to declare various classes of people as frontline workers for the purpose of being eligible for vaccination on priority..Currently, vaccination is available only for frontline workers like medical staff, security and police force etc and for those above 60 years of age or those above 45 with co-morbidities..Apart from proposing that teachers, taxi drivers etc be made eligible for vaccination, Dr Singh also mooted that lawyers be considered for the same.“States should be given some flexibility to define categories of frontline workers who can be vaccinated even if they are below 45 years of age. For example, States may want to designate school teachers,, bus, three-wheeler and taxi drivers, municipal and panchayat staff and possibly lawyers who have to attend courts as frontline workers. They can then be vaccinated even of they are below 45 (years old),” the letter written by Dr. Singh said..However, the Central government is opposed to the idea of giving priority vaccination for lawyers.In response to a petition filed before the Supreme Court, the Centre had said that it would not be appropriate to give priority to lawyers..In an affidavit filed before the top court, Additional Secretary in the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Manohar Agnani told the Court that it would not be desirable to create a separate class consisting of lawyers and judges as it could be discriminatory towards persons engaged in other trade or profession..The affidavit said that lawyers and staff who are above 60 years of age or are above 45 years old with co-morbidities are anyways covered by the present vaccination drive.“It may not be desirable to create a separate class consisting of lawyers and others below 45 years of age discriminating persons engaged in other trade, profession or business and working under similar geographic conditions and circumstances," the affidavit said..Interestingly, the Supreme Court came to be seized of this issue after various petitions were filed before different High Courts seeking priority vaccination for judges and lawyers..The Delhi High Court had, on February 4, rejected a PIL which sought a direction to the government authorities to forthwith include judges, judicial staffs, advocates, clerks and the members of the legal fraternity in first phase of COVID-19 vaccination..The High Court subsequently registered a suo motu case in this regard based on a letter by the Bar Council of Delhi seeking declaration of persons associated with judicial functioning as frontline workers.A similar PIL was also filed before the Bombay High Court, which had sought the government's response to the same..Vaccine manufacturers had then approached the Supreme Court seeking transfer of all such cases to the Supreme Court citing multiplicity of proceedings.The same was allowed by the Supreme Court, which transferred all such cases before High Courts to itself and started hearing the matter..The Central government’s affidavit came pursuant to that. The case is slated to be heard again later this month.