HC directs Rajasthan govt to submit report on vaccination of Pak migrants

By LE Desk

Jaipur, May 29: The Rajasthan High Court has directed the state government to submit a detailed report on June 3, complying with the standard operating procedure (SOP) issued by the Central government to vaccinate the migrants group from Pakistan.

The court on Friday also said the state should ensure that ration material and food packets are made available to all needy Pakistani minority migrants residing in various districts in Rajasthan either through the food supplies department, local bodies or the NGOs, the Hindustan Times reported.

In the division bench of Justice Vijay Bishnoi and Justice Rameshwar Vyas, Assistant Solicitor General Mukesh Rajpurohit filed an affidavit wherein it is stated that the Central government issued a detailed SOP on Covid-19 vaccination of those without prescribed identity cards through the CoWIN app on May 6 and that after receiving the requisite information from the state and district administration regarding the groups included in the SOP, the vaccines will be provided to them.

The SOP states that the district task force may identify such groups of persons in respective districts without any of the prescribed individual photo ID cards with assistance from the concerned government departments/organisations, such as the department of minority affairs, social justice, social welfare, etc.

Information regarding the identified groups and the number of beneficiaries must be covered, collated at the state level and the state government must issue clear instructions for the implementation of these SOPs along with the district-wise estimated maximum number of doses to be administered using this special dispensation.

However, during the hearing, Additional Advocate General (AAG) Karan Singh Rajpurohit told the court that around 25,000 Pakistani minority migrants are residing in Rajasthan across various districts at present.

“Every Pakistani minority migrant does not need free ration and food because many of the families are self-sufficient. It is further submitted that the district administrations are taking note of the situation and will ensure that no such person will be deprived of ration or food during the period of lockdown,” he said.

He added, “So far, as the Covid-19 vaccination of the Pakistani minority migrants is concerned, SOP issued by the Central government is silent regarding the Pakistani minority migrants and, therefore, clarifications are being sought from the Central government regarding the vaccination of Pakistani minority migrants who have not been granted citizenship till date.”

“We are of the opinion that the SOP on Covid-19 vaccination of persons without prescribed identity cards through CoWIN issued by the Central government is elaborate and in no way excluding the Pakistani minority migrants who are eligible for Covid-19 vaccination. We have also noticed that several directions regarding the identification of groups of people including in the SOP have been given but the state has not submitted any details regarding the identification of such groups,” the bench said.

AAG Rajpurohit sought some time to furnish details regarding the steps taken by the state across districts as per the procedure given in Clause 5 of the SOP.

Welcoming the court’s order, Hindu Singh Sodha, president of Seemant Lok Sangathan, which is fighting for the rights of Pakistani migrants, said, “we had been demanding this for a long time. Now we have hope”.

https://www.hindustantimes.com/cities/jaipur-news/hc-directs-rajasthan-govt-to-submit-report-on-vaccination-of-pak-migrants-101622203102014.html