SC notice to Centre on plea for including those in legal services for Covid-19 vaccine

The Supreme Court on Tuesday agreed to consider a PIL for addressing concerns of the legal fraternity all over India against their exclusion from the priority category of the population identified for the administration of Covid-19 vaccine.

A bench of Chief Justice S A Bobde and Justices A S Bopanna and V Ramasubramanian issued notice to the Union government on a PIL by Arvind Singh through advocate Rishi Sehgal.

The court sought a response from the Union government within two weeks.

Advocate Amit Khemka, appearing for the petitioner, also an advocate, argued that the persons associated with the legal system i.e. the judges, lawyers, court officers and staff and staff of the lawyers all over India are rendering ‘essential services’.

They ought to be considered for inclusion in the identified priority group of persons who will be administered the Covid-19 vaccine on a priority basis.

The petitioner submitted that the National Expert Group on Vaccine Administration, constituted by the government for guidance on vaccination has not even considered the claim of the people belonging to the legal community in its report running into more than 150 pages.

While the police and other government agencies are being treated as frontline workers and all cases handled by these agencies ultimately landed in the courts only and therefore the people involved with the working of the courts must also be treated as frontline workers, their plea contended.

The petitioner maintained that ‘legal system’ being one of the pillars of the Constitution of India, legal workers also rendering ‘essential services’.