'Orphan is an orphan': SC asks Centre for ways to extend Covid-19 schemes to all orphaned children

PTC News Desk: Supreme Court has ruled that an orphan is an orphan regardless of how his or her parents died, asking the Centre whether there are any ways that the benefits of schemes such as the PM Cares fund, which were meant for children orphaned during the Covid-19 pandemic, can be extended to all orphans.

A bench of Chief Justice DY Chandrachud, Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, and Additional Solicitor General Vikramjeet Banerjee, standing for the Centre, directed Additional Solicitor General Vikramjeet Banerjee to seek instructions in the matter on Friday.

"You have rightly brought out a policy for orphans, whose parents died due to the COVID pandemic. An orphan is an orphan, irrespective of whether the parents died in an accident or illness. By bringing these schemes, you are attending to the condition and not the parentage."

"You seek an instruction on whether benefits of schemes including PM Cares fund meant for children orphaned during the COVID-19 pandemic can be extended to other orphaned children," the top court said.

The ASG stated that he was recently granted a brief to appear in the matter and that he will respond to the court's inquiry in four weeks.

Petitioner Poulomi Pavini Shukla, who attended in person, stated that children orphaned during the pandemic received benefits under the Right to Education Act and that similar benefits might be provided to other orphan children if the court so rules.

"Two states Delhi and Gujarat have been providing benefits of the Right to Education Act by issuing a simple government order under section 2(d) of the Right to Education Act and this can be done in other states also," Shukla said.

The bench noted the argument and directed the Centre to look into the expression "such other group" in section 2(d) of the RTE Act and consider extending the benefits to all orphans by issuing suitable guidelines.

Shukla stated that the notice on her plea was issued in 2018, the year she submitted the petition, but the Centre has yet to file its response after five years.

"In 2018, I was studying law when I filed this petition. Five years have passed, I have written a book and am married now but still Centre has not filed its response," the petitioner said.

Advocate Prashant Bhushan, who also appeared in the case, said orphan children should be given the same 20% quota for Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) as other children in school admissions.

The bench urged Banerjee to seek instructions to submit a detailed affidavit, as well as the states to file answers on the aspect of section 2(d) of the Right to Education Act.

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