Lagatar24 Desk
New Delhi, May 2: The Supreme Court said on Monday that no individual can be forced to get vaccinated as ‘bodily integrity is part of fundamental right to life under Article 21’. The Court also said that it’s satisfied that the current vaccine policy can’t be said to be unreasonable and manifestly arbitrary.
The apex court said that government can form policy and impose some conditions for the larger public good. It said that condition imposed by some state government, organisations restricting access of unvaccinated people to public places is not proportional and should be recalled in the present prevailing conditions.
The Court also directed the Centre to make public the data on adverse effects of COVID-19 vaccination. The court allowed “the policy to vaccinate those under the age of 18 but required the centre to make public all clinical trials, major findings, and results of vaccinations” that had already been cleared.
The court has instructed the central government to ‘enable information of all alleged adverse effects on a virtual platform that is freely accessible to the public’ in situations involving adverse consequences.
The petitioner expressed worry that there was insufficient data on the vaccinations’ efficacy.
According to official data, more than 189 crore vaccine doses have been administered so far, with India aiming to increase coverage. While all adult booster doses were approved last month, the government has now approved immunizations for children over the age of five.
