Delhi HC directs Railways to fully reimburse retired employee’s Covid medical bills

The Delhi High Court upheld a CAT order directing the Railways to fully reimburse Covid treatment costs for a retired employee, ruling that medical reimbursement is an enforceable right. The Railways must pay the balance with 8 per cent interest

New Delhi: The Delhi High Court has dismissed a writ petition filed by the Union government against a Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) order directing full reimbursement of medical expenses to a retired railway employee for Covid-19 treatment.

A Bench of Justices Navin Chawla and Madhu Jain upheld the CAT’s February 13 order in favour of Ayodhya Prasad, a former Office Superintendent-II who retired from Banaras Locomotive Works in 2004, observing that medical reimbursement is not a matter of “concession or charity but an enforceable right”.

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Respondent-Prasad, a beneficiary under the Retired Employees Liberalised Health Scheme (RELHS), was admitted in April 2021 to Apollo Hospital in Ahmedabad during a severe Covid-19 infection. While his total treatment bill amounted to Rs 7,46,657, the Railways reimbursed only Rs 3,92,939, citing ceilings fixed by the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation.

His review application and appeal for the balance were rejected, prompting him to move to the CAT. The Tribunal directed reimbursement of the remaining Rs 3,53,718, which the Union government challenged before the Delhi High Court.

Rejecting the Centre’s reliance on Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation rate caps, the Justice Chawla-led Bench held that reimbursement could not be curtailed in emergency medical situations.

“The plea that reimbursement has already been made strictly as per the rates notified by the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation cannot be sustained in the present factual matrix,” it said.

“Once it is undisputed that the respondent had to undergo treatment during a medical emergency, the rigidity of rate fixation cannot stand in the way of full reimbursement,” the Delhi High Court observed, adding that medical reimbursement is not a concession or charity but an enforceable right flowing from the employer’s duty in a welfare state.

The Justice Chawla-led Bench, citing the Supreme Court’s ruling in Shiv Kant Jha v. Union of India, said: “It is a settled legal position that the government employee during his lifetime or after his retirement is entitled to get the benefit of the medical facilities and no fetters can be placed on his rights… Once it is established, the claim cannot be denied on technical grounds.”

Refusing to interfere with the CAT’s order, the Delhi High Court directed the Railways to reimburse the balance amount along with 8 per cent interest. “The petitioners shall release the balance payment of the medical expenses to the respondent, along with interest at the rate of 8 per cent per annum, within a period of eight weeks,” the Justice Chawla-led Bench ordered.