The Bombay High Court on Wednesday pulled up the Maharashtra government over its "apathy" towards filling up vacancies in the state advisory board for policies related to disabled persons, making it non-functional since the last four years
A vacation bench of Justices Arif Doctor and Somasekhar Sundaresan recorded a statement on behalf of BMC that till the petition by Dr Semanti Bose (33) “is heard by the regular bench, no precipitative steps shall be taken in so far as termination of services of the petitioner is concerned.”
The judges directed the woman's admission to a home till delivery. If she's uncomfortable there, hospital shall permit her to be admitted till delivery. If she wants to give up the child for adoption, the state "will assume responsibility of the child".
Tata Chemicals Limited and others had appealed against the order in question, dated October 13, 2016, under Section 71(6) of the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006 in the case involving Tata Chemicals Limited and others versus the State of Maharashtra.
The top court had ordered her medical examination on the plea moved by her mother, challenging the Bombay High Court decision declining to allow the termination of the pregnancy owing to the advanced stage.
Government pleader Priyabhushan Kakade said preliminary reports indicate that on February 20 more than 200 persons took ill “after consuming prasad or something” from a temple. They were taken to rural hospitals. He said nearly 150 patients rush to a 30-bedded hospital. “There was a sudden influx. The situation was an emergency.
The Bombay High Court on Friday pulled up the Maharashtra government for not releasing or spending the entire budgetary allocation for procurement of drugs and medical equipment, citing that it was letting the amount lapse at the cost of the healthcare system. A division bench of Chief Justice D K Upadhyaya and Justice Arif Doctor sought to know from the government what steps have been taken to spend the budgetary allocation, the reasons for not releasing the amount entirely in the past and for not using the released sum.
The Bombay High Court dismissed a petition filed by Serum Institute of India Pvt Ltd challenging a 2016 amendment to the Income Tax Act, 2015. The amendment included subsidies, grants, and incentives as 'income'. The High Court upheld the constitutional validity of the amended provision, stating that taxation is an economic reality that every business entity must contend with. The court warned that granting tax exemptions to loss-incurring entities could open floodgates for manipulations. The court emphasized that the mere fact that a tax falls more heavily on certain goods or persons does not invalidate it.
The Supreme Court of India will examine whether a transgender woman who undergoes gender reassignment surgery and marries a man can seek relief under the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act. The court's decision comes after an appeal was filed against a ruling by the Bombay High Court, which held that such women are protected under the Act and entitled to maintenance. The High Court had ruled that a person who chooses their self-identified gender is an aggrieved person within the meaning of the Act.
The two departments are the Medical Education and Drugs Department (MEDD) which oversees medical colleges plus tertiary care hospitals and the Public Health Department (PHD) which runs secondary and primary level hospitals. MEDD has 42 per cent vacancies as against 36145 sanctioned posts, while PHD has 35 per cent vacancies as against 57714 sanctioned posts.
The Bombay High Court has criticized the state government for trying to shift responsibility for deaths in state-run hospitals. The court stated that the government cannot use the high number of patients as an excuse and must take responsibility for the situation. The advocate general defended the hospitals, stating that the deaths were not due to gross negligence. However, the court expressed concern over the lack of manpower and budgetary allocation for public healthcare. They also called for the appointment of a CEO for the medical goods procurement authority.
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