[COVID-19] Delhi High Court seeks Delhi govt response in plea to recognise deceased judicial officers as frontline workers

The Delhi High Court on Monday issued notice in a plea to declare judicial officers who have lost their lives due to COVID-19 as frontline workers in the line of duty (Tanveer Ahmed Mir v. GNCTD)..The plea also sought payment of Rs 1 crore and Rs 50 lakh each as ex gratia relief to the families of deceased judicial members and other court staff, respectively. .Response from the Delhi government and the High Court's administrative side was sought by a Division Bench of Chief Justice DN Patel and Justice Jasmeet Singh. .Petitioner-in-person, Advocate Tanveer Ahmed Mir stated that he had occasion to speak to a Sessions Judge whose wife was hospitalised on account of COVID-19, and had already spent Rs 8.5 lakh on her treatment..After brief submissions, the Court issued notice and said, "We are taking action on the administrative side.".The petitioner has asserted that the members of the lower judiciary including the court staff and the department of prosecution, were undeniably, indisputably and unequivocally discharging their duties on the frontline and facilitating the dispensation of justice for the legal community and the general public at large..Mir further argued that the government authorities not only "miserably failed in making adequate preparations," including installing glass sheets, cabins etc, but also did not immediately vaccinate all judicial officers regardless of their age..The petitioner thus contended that now, the government authorities are duty-bound to grant ex-gratia relief to the deceased members of subordinate judiciary and the court staff, as was done in the case of police personnel who unfortunately lost their lives while performing their duties during the COVID-19 pandemic. ."Deceased Sh. K. Venugopal, Ld. Family Judge, Saket District Courts and Sh. Kamran Khan, Ld. MM, Dwarka District Courts, undoubtedly got infected with COVID-19 while performing their duties in their respective courts and most unfortunately lost their precious lives, having non pensionable jobs, the conduct of the respondents in not granting them the same/similar ex-gratia reliefs, immediate and forthwith, is illegal, arbitrary, meriting interference on an immediate basis at the end of this Hon'ble Court," the plea stated..It is also highlighted that although the subordinate judiciary is entitled to free treatment in certain empanelled hospitals, presently, a large number of judicial officers, court staff and their family members, are finding it extremely difficult to manage the exorbitant medical expenses of COVID-19 treatment.