Cut-off dates for COVID-19 ex-gratia benefits are not sacrosanct if infection occurred during the scheme's subsistence.

The Petitioners are the legal heirs of Santosh Vishnu Shinde, who served as a Junior Clerk at the Civil Court, Chiplun.

The deceased was on active duty until May 31, 2021, followed by a sanctioned summer vacation from June 1 to June 6, 2021.

He fell ill on June 7, 2021, and a CT scan on June 10, 2021, indicated atypical pneumonia suggestive of SARS-CoV-2.

He tested COVID-19 positive on June 14, 2021, and was hospitalized the same day with an oxygen saturation level of 70%.

He eventually succumbed to COVID-19 pneumonia on July 3, 2021.

The Petitioners sought ex-gratia compensation of ₹50,00,000/- under various Government Resolutions (GRs). However, the State rejected the claim via a communication dated October 26, 2023, on the grounds that the death occurred after the June 30, 2021, cutoff date prescribed in the GR dated April 25, 2022.

Whether the Petitioners are entitled to the ex-gratia insurance benefit of ₹50,00,000/- under the relevant Government Resolutions despite the death occurring three days after the prescribed cutoff date of June 30, 2021.

The court primarily interpreted the Government Resolution (GR) dated May 29, 2020, which established the ex-gratia/insurance scheme for government employees performing COVID-19 related duties, stipulating that the employee must have been on duty within 14 days prior to hospitalization or death.

This scheme was extended by GRs dated October 14, 2020, and April 25, 2022, the latter of which set a cutoff date for deaths occurring on or before June 30, 2021.

The court further relied on the precedent set in Vijaya Yashwant Jadhav v. Block Development Officer (WP No. 17617 of 2024), which held that the June 30 cutoff date is not sacrosanct if the infection was contracted and hospitalization commenced prior to that date while on duty.

The court observed that the core objective of the GR dated May 29, 2020, was to provide financial support to the families of employees who risked their lives during the pandemic.

It noted a conflict between the original eligibility criterion (duty within 14 days of hospitalization/death) and the rigid cutoff date of June 30, 2021, introduced in the subsequent GR.

In this case, the deceased was on duty until May 31, 2021, and was hospitalized with COVID-19 on June 14, 2021—exactly within the 14-day window contemplated by the original policy.

The court reasoned that denying relief solely because the death occurred on July 3, 2021 (three days past the cutoff), would be "contrary to the values of justice, fairness, and dignity" and "contrary to public conscience".

Following the liberal interpretation in Vijaya Yashwant Jadhav, the court determined that since the disease was contracted and the hospitalization began during the covered period, the temporal cutoff for the actual moment of death could not be used to defeat a legitimate claim.

It held that the deceased’s case was squarely covered by the GR dated May 29, 2020, read with subsequent extensions.

The Respondents were directed to pay the ex-gratia insurance cover of ₹50,00,000/- to the Petitioners within six weeks.

The matter was listed for May 4, 2026, to report compliance.