New Delhi: The Supreme Court Tuesday directed the Indian Air Force to compensate an IAF veteran who contracted HIV during a blood transfusion at an Army hospital in Jammu and Kashmir’s Samba in July 2002. A bench of justices Ravindra Bhat and Aravind Kumar ordered the IAF to pay the veteran over Rs 1.54 crore, and gave it the liberty to recover half the amount from the Army as the veteran was treated at an Army hospital.
An indictment of both the Army and IAF for medical negligence, the judgement held both “vicariously liable, jointly and severally” for the incident.
The order came on the officer’s appeal against the National Commission Disputes Redressal Commission’s decision not to give any relief to him in the matter.
According to the submissions, the officer fell ill during Operation Parakram and was admitted to the hospital in Samba where he was administered one unit of blood. The veteran was diagnosed with HIV in 2014 and enquiries revealed that the infection was due to the blood transfusion.
Following this, the officer was not granted an extension of service and was discharged in 2016. He then went to the NCDRC, seeking compensation from the two services on account of medical negligence.
When he was denied relief, the officer appealed to the Supreme Court, which Tuesday set aside the commission’s ruling.
NCDRC had said that in the absence of an “expert opinion”, which could establish the military hospital was at fault, it would not be correct to hold it guilty for medical negligence.
Overruling NCDRC’s judgement, the bench said a “duty is cast on all state functionaries, including echelons of power within the armed forces to ensure that the highest standards of safety which is physical, and mental well-being as well as wellness of the personnel is maintained”.
It fixed a six-week deadline for the IAF to pay the compensation amount. Additionally, the IAF was also directed to clear all arrears related to disability pension within the same time period.
The bench also issued directions to the government to comply with the HIV/AIDS (Prevention & Control), Act 2017. “Every court, quasi-judicial body including all tribunals, commissions, forums etc. discharging judicial functions set under central and state enactment shall take active measures to comply with the provision of section 34 which prioritises the cases of all these persons suffering from AIDS,” it noted.
The court said that “although” it “has attempted to give tangible relief” to the officer, it “realises that no amount of compensation and monetary terms can undo the harm caused by such behaviour which has shaken the foundation of the appellant’s dignity, robbed him of honour and rendered him not only desperate but cynical”.
The top court further said that people sign up to join the armed forces with considerable enthusiasm and a sense of patriotic duty. “This entails a conscious decision to put their lives on the line and be prepared for the ultimate sacrifice of their lives,” it said.
Pulling up the two services for their lack of empathy towards the veteran, the bench observed the case has “demonstrated how dignity, honour and compassion towards the appellant were completely lacking” in the behaviour of the respondents. Such a demeanour, it said, was contrary to the expectations young officers of either sex, joining the armed forces have, which is to be treated with dignity and honour.
The forces, it added, are not only to ensure the morale of their personnel, but should also show how much they matter and their lives count, and that this reinforces their commitment and confidence.
“Any flouting of these standards as the multiple instances in the present case have established, only entails a loss of confidence in personnel, undermines their morale, and injects a sense of bitterness and despair not only on the individual but to the entire force leaving a sense of injustice,” it said.
(Edited by Amrtansh Arora)
Also Read: ‘Should shock your conscience’: Supreme Court pulls up UP after Muslim boy slapped in school