SC Orders No-Fault Covid Vaccine Compensation Policy

• Supreme Court directs Centre to frame no-fault compensation policy for vaccine adverse events
• Order passed while hearing pleas over alleged Covishield vaccine deaths
• Court clarifies policy will not imply government liability or fault
• Existing monitoring mechanism for vaccine adverse events to continue

GG News Bureau
New Delhi, 10th March: The Supreme Court on Tuesday directed the Centre to formulate a no-fault compensation policy for individuals who suffered serious adverse events following Covid-19 vaccination.

The direction came while the court delivered its judgment on a batch of petitions, including a plea alleging that two young women died in 2021 after receiving the first dose of the Covishield vaccine.

A bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta said the government should create a compensation framework that would allow affected individuals or families to receive financial support without the need to prove negligence or fault.

No-fault compensation systems are designed to provide relief to victims of injury or harm without requiring them to establish legal liability against authorities or institutions.

The court clarified that framing such a compensation policy should not be interpreted as an admission of liability or fault by the Union Government or any other authority.

“The formulation of the no-fault framework shall not be construed as an admission of liability or fault on the part of the Union of India or any other authority,” the bench observed.

The Supreme Court also directed that the existing mechanism for monitoring Adverse Events Following Immunisation (AEFI) should continue to function, with data related to such events regularly placed in the public domain to ensure transparency.

Rejecting a key demand from the petitioners, the court ruled that there was no need to set up a separate court-appointed expert body to investigate vaccine-related adverse events.

“No separate court-appointed expert body is considered necessary in view of the existing mechanism for scientific assessment of adverse events following immunisation,” the bench said.

The case was filed by the parents of two women aged 18 and 20, who alleged that their daughters suffered severe adverse reactions after receiving their first doses of the Covishield vaccine.

The petitioners claimed they had approached authorities for clarification but did not receive satisfactory responses, prompting them to seek judicial intervention and compensation.

While directing the Centre to frame a compensation policy, the Supreme Court also clarified that the ruling does not prevent individuals from pursuing other legal remedies available under the law.

The judgment is expected to have wider implications for the handling of vaccine-related injury claims and the development of public health compensation frameworks in India.