New Delhi:The Supreme Court Thursday permitted the Centre to conduct an inquiry into fake claims for ex-gratia compensation meant for family members of those who have lost their lives due to Covid-19. A bench of Justices M R Shah and B V Nagarathna said the government can verify 5 percent of claims in four states -- Maharashtra, Kerala, Gujarat, and Andhra Pradesh -- where the gap between several claims and recorded deaths was wide.
The top court also set 60 days which would be given to all such persons who are eligible as on date to apply for the ex-gratia compensation and 90 days shall be given to the future claimants. The Centre had earlier filed an application seeking a deadline of four weeks for claiming ex gratia payment from authorities on the death of kin due to COVID-19. The court had earlier expressed concern over fake claims for getting ex gratia compensation of Rs 50,000, meant for family members of those who have lost their lives due to COVID-19, saying it had never visualized that this can be "misused" or thought that the morality has not gone so down.
It had also directed all state governments and Union Territories to appoint a dedicated nodal officer to coordinate with the member secretary of the state legal service authority (SLSA) to facilitate the payment of ex gratia compensation. The top court, which was earlier annoyed over the non-disbursal of the Rs 50,000 ex gratia, had pulled up the state governments. It had said on October 4 last year that no state shall deny ex gratia of Rs 50,000 to the next of kin of those who died after being infected with COVID-19 solely because the death certificate does not mention the virus as the cause of death.