Tehseen Poonawalla files petition in SC seeking vaccination for all

New Delhi, Apr 12: TED-X Speaker, Tehseen Poonawalla has filed a petition in the Supreme Court requesting it to ask the Centre to open up vaccinations for all, including citizens under the age of 45 in the wake of increasing Covid 19 cases in the country. The plea said, "It is surprising why the central government did not allow more people to be vaccinated despite India being the "vaccine manufacturer" of the world."

 

 

 

According to the plea, the arbitrary bar on the age groups coupled with the sudden rise in the number of infections due to Covid 19 disease, necessitates immediate steps to be taken to ensure that vaccination is not only available to persons aged above 45 years but to all persons below the age of 45-years, who are employed in work that requires them to go outside every day as well as all persons with any of the co-morbid conditions as vulnerable groups.

 

The bar on availability of approved vaccines to persons below the age of 45 years, despite having co-morbid conditions, is arbitrary, unreasonable and ultra vires Article 21 of the Indian constitution, the plea added.

 

 

 

 

The petition has been preferred in the public interest, challenging the arbitrary bar on vaccination for the novel coronavirus disease or COVID 19 disease only to "prioritized age groups" above 45 years of age, while there has been an evidently steep increase in the cases of COVID 19 disease in the country, with the daily rise in cases being that of approximately 1.31 lakh new cases on Apr 9 itself, presenting the country with an evident and ever-increasing need to allow vaccination for COVID 19 to all age groups and especially to all persons with co-morbidities such as respiratory illnesses and terminal illness, who, despite being vulnerable to COVID 19, have not been given the option to be protected by the vaccine," the plea added.