The Allahabad High Court has directed the Union of India (through the Secretary, Ministry of Finance) and the Reserve Bank of India (through its Executive Director, Banking Regulation) to file affidavits disclosing their proposals, or any existing guidelines, for releasing funds lying in the savings bank accounts of patients who are in a coma, to their dependants.
The Court said that when a person slips into a coma, their dependants are left without access to the account holder’s own money, unable to meet hospital expenses, care for the patient, or even run the household. It called for legislation by the competent legislature or RBI guidelines regulating nationalised and subsidiary banks to create a mechanism for releasing such funds.
Briefly, the petitioner’s counsel informed the Allahabad High Court that the account holder, who had been in a coma, had died that day. Counsel submitted that the Central Government had not taken steps to comply with the Court’s observations in Uma Mittal vs. Union of India [2020 SCC OnLine All 777]. The Court recorded that its earlier orders had sought compliance from the State and Union governments. The Chief Secretary had filed an affidavit seeking more time because passing legislation would require a lengthy exercise, while counsel for the Union stated that he had no instructions in the matter.
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The Division Bench comprising Justice Garima Prashad and Justice Ajit Kumar expressed concern that dependants of a person in a coma may be left without the funds needed to meet hospital expenses, care for the patient or run the household. It observed that legislation by the competent legislature, or appropriate RBI guidelines, was needed to provide a mechanism for releasing money held in such patients’ savings bank accounts to their dependants.
The Court required the Central Government to state its position in writing and sought the RBI’s response. The order proceeds on the need for a concrete governmental or regulatory response to the urgent financial difficulties faced by dependants of account holders in a coma.
