Launching a vitriolic attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government over the Supreme Court’s ruling that the Centre must pay compensation to the family of Covid-19 victims, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday said the ruling dispensation has now got an opportunity to rectify its mistake.
Gandhi welcomed the apex court’s ruling and said “this is an important step in the right direction”.
“SC has given an opportunity to Modi government to rectify the mistake. At least now the government should provide relief to the victims by fixing the right amount of compensation. This is an important step in the right direction,” he tweeted in Hindi.
Earlier in the day, the apex court while pronouncing its judgment in this regard said the Central government must decide the amount that is to be paid as ex-gratia.
The apex court also directed the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) to ascertain within six weeks the ex-gratia amount that can be paid to the family members of those who succumbed to the Covid-19 infection.
The NDMA was also directed to issue guidelines for proper death certificates, which specify Covid-19 as the cause of death.
The order by a three-judge apex court bench headed by Justice Ashok Bhushan came in response to a plea seeking ex-gratia of Rs 4 lakh each to the families of those who succumbed to the virus.