The Home Ministry is learnt to have failed to take the nod of the family of late Justice J S Verma before announcing Padma Bhushan for him which led to refusal by them to accept the award.
The Home Ministry officials normally take permission of the awardees or family members, in case of those who are given the awards posthumously, after finalisation of the Padma award list but before announcing the name.
Sources said, this year, on the eve of the Republic Day, the Home Ministry officials called up most of the 127 awardees or close family members but "a few" have been left out due to some unavoidable circumstances.
It seems for some reasons, the family members of Justice Verma could not be contacted which resulted in the goof up, sources said.
Justice Verma's family is apparently upset over the fact that initially he was nominated for the higher Padma Vibhushan but later he was awarded the Padma Bhushan posthumously, an award a notch below.
Refusing to accept the award, Verma's wife Pushpa wrote to President Pranab Mukherjee, saying accepting it would be against his principles as he never "hankered" for any such honour.
She said, "The greatest honour to him remains how he is held in the hearts and minds of his fellow countrymen: as a true friend not just to women or the youth, but to those most in need of one..."
"He never hankered or lobbied for any acclaim, reward or favour...We do not want to accept what we know justice Verma himself would not have accepted," she wrote.
