The Thane Municipal Corporation (TMC) cannot insist upon heirship/succession certificate to pay ₹10 lakh compensation for deaths of manual scavengers while cleaning sewer/septic tanks.
In case, there is more than one claimant, the TMC should conduct a preliminary enquiry/verification, but if the same is found to be genuine, the compensation should be released immediately, the Bombay High Court has said.
On July 18, the court was hearing a petition filed by NGO Shramik Janata Sangh and Raju Madhve, whose 21-year-old son Suraj died while cleaning a septic tank of a private housing society at Kausa in Mumbra on March 29, 2022. The organisation has been creating awareness about eradication of manual scavenging.
The plea contended that although the TMC has adopted a resolution to pay ₹10 lakh to family members of such deceased workers while cleaning a sewer or septic tank of a private building or a co-operative society, it is insisting on a heirship/succession certificate as a precondition.
Insisting on certificate
Gayatri Singh, counsel for the petitioners, submitted the Supreme Court’s judgments that specify that it’s the responsibility of the authorities to ensure compensation is paid. She argued that the corporation’s insistence on certificate even in undisputed cases is resulting in inordinate delay in payment of compensation to the families.
TMC counsel Ram Apte contended that in the absence of heirship / succession certificate, there is a possibility of the amount of compensation being misappropriated by persons other than legal heirs.
The bench noted that it appreciates the civic body’s concern but said that the insistence on a certificate is substantially delaying the compensation.
BMC cannot insist on producing heirship
The bench said: “It cannot be that in every case of death of a sewage worker engaged in manual scavenging there are competing claims amongst relatives. Therefore, the Municipal Corporation cannot insist on production of heirship/succession certificates in every case where there are no disputes amongst the relatives.”
It further added: “It will completely defeat the entire objective behind payment of compensation. All that we need to ensure at this stage is timely payment of compensation to the families considering the objective behind payment of compensation.”
The HC has asked the TMC to verify documents in eight pending cases mentioned in the petition and release the compensation where there are no disputes. The HC has kept the matter for hearing on August 24.
