The Delhi High Court today sought response of the Centre and the state government on a four-year -old boy's plea seeking direction to provide him free of cost treatment for bone marrow transplant at AIIMS.
Justice Manmohan also directed All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) to file its reply as to why the kid should not be given free treatment.
The court has now fixed the matter for further hearing on July 24.
The court notice came on the plea filed by Kulraj Singh, who is suffering from Aplastic anemia and was denied treatment by AIIMS early this month on the ground that his parents were unable to pay the sum of Rs 10 lakh for the treatment.
While seeking direction to the government, his counsel Ashok Aggarwal informed the court that Kulraj, who was undergoing treatment since April 2013, is suffering from the life-threatening disorder and was in dire and immediate need of bone-marrow transplant.
The counsel said that Delhi government also refused to bear the expenses of treatment, "thereby causing consequent failure on their part in performing their constitutional duty of providing free treatment to the boy".
He also told the court that the boy's parents are not in a position to afford the cost of the treatment asked by AIIMS.
The total cost of the treatment is estimated to be Rs 10 lakh while the average monthly income of the petitioner's family is Rs 8,000 per month, the counsel said.
He further said that the "hospital, Centre and the state government have a Constitutional obligation under Article 21 of the Constitution to bear the entire cost of the treatment of the patient, in order to save his life".
"... That his present earnings, as well as future earnings, would never be sufficient to afford the cost of the treatment of Aplastic Anaemia amounting to Rs 10 lakh.
"Because the impugned action of respondents in denying free and continuous treatment to the petitioner is illegal, unjustified, unconstitutional and violative of human and fundamental rights as guaranteed to petitioner by the Articles 14 and 21 of the Constitution," the counsel added.
