The Madras High Court directed the Tamil Nadu government to pay a compensation of ₹5 lakh to the Sri Lankan refugee parents whose child died after a wall collapse at the camp where they all were staying. The bench of a single judge of Madurai Justice G.R. Swaminathan passed the order that the right to life is prescribed under Article 21 of the Constitution, which applies to all persons residing in India including refugees.
The Court said that it could not be classified as an act of God as there was a piece of evidence to show that the refugee camp was accommodated in a weak and in need of repair so that they could live properly. The court held that the State government was in charge of the refugee camp and was responsible for the incident and they should take all the liability for this act.
The State’s responsibility was to ensure refugees were provided with reasonable and decent accommodation facilities, as the Government had access to clean drinking water and basic infrastructural facilities for the refugees. The Court refrained the compensation amount directly to the victim’s father who was the petitioner in the case as the judge thought that the petitioner might end up spending the entire amount on alcohol as he was an addict. The Court directed the State to fix an amount of ₹5 lakh in the name of the victim’s mother and permitted her to withdraw the money after three years from now.
NAME – ABHIPRA AGARWAL, COLLEGE – CHANDERPRABHU JAIN COLLEGE OF HIGHER STUDIES, GGSIPU, AN INTERN UNDER LEGAL VIDHIYA
