KOCHI: The Union government on Wednesday filed an appeal before the Kerala high court against a single bench’s judgment directing for providing second dose of paid Covid-19 vaccination after four weeks instead of 84 days.
On September 6, a single bench had held that not allowing a citizen paying for the second dose to receive it after four weeks while allowing some categories, such as those going abroad, to do so was discriminatory.
The Union government had contended that if such a legal precedent is set, it would nullify the national policy for administration of vaccine. It has also been argued by the government that the single bench’s ruling goes against the settled position that decisions taken by the government on the basis of scientific evidence should not be interfered with by courts by substituting its own view.
Additionally, the government said in the appeal that the dosage gaps of vaccines were revised several times in view of emerging scientific data. The present gap for Covishield was decided on the basis of technical advice that it would provide the best protection against Covid-19, the appeal said.
The ruling could also lead to a chaos in vaccine administration, including premature administration and inappropriate administration. The government would also be forced to accept the demands of business groups for early vaccination and this would negatively affect the present system of vaccine administration, the government said.
