In a setback for Pune's Grant Medical Foundation Ruby Hall Clinic, the Bombay High Court has restrained the hospital from using the funds meant for the weaker section of the society to pay the salaries of its staff and other expenses. The HC said that the hospital must instead use its fixed deposit for the expenses, since it is currently reeling under a financial crisis.
A bench of Justice Shahrukh Kathawalla, however, clarified that the funds meant for the weaker section can be used only to treat citizens suffering from COVID-19, who hail from the lower strata of the society.
The bench was dealing with a plea filed by the Ruby Hall Clinic, a public charitable hospital, seeking permission to use Rs 3 crore it has in its account meant for the weaker section and the Indigent Patients Fund (IPF).
Notably, every charitable hospital under the Bombay Public Trusts Act, has to comply with the scheme, which mandates reservation of 10 per cent of the total beds for the patients belonging to the IPF and weaker section categories.
As per the scheme, the hospital has to use 2 per cent of the total billing amount of every patient towards the IPF or weaker section fund, which could be used to treat only the patients from these two categories.
According to Ruby Hall Clinic, presently during the pandemic, no planned surgeries, procedures and operations, not in the nature of life saving or emergency procedures or surgeries are being carried out, which enables it to cross subsidise the costs of treating the patients under the IPF and weaker section categories. It further pointed out that its Out Patient Department (OPD) has not been functioning and income or revenue from this source, is also not available.
"Though our sources of income have dried up, we still have to pay the salaries of the staff and the resident doctors, which runs into lakhs of rupees. This is apart from the other fixed overheads such as electricity, maintenance of equipment, municipal charges towards water, sewerage and other municipal taxes and charges," the hospital's trust pleaded.
It had accordingly moved a plea before the Deputy Charity Commissioner, Pune, who dismissed the plea stating it to be vague. The authority had opined that if the hospital is allowed, then it will defeat the very purpose of creating such a fund, and would open floodgates for making similar applications by other hospitals.
However, during the course of the hearing, Justice Kathawalla noted that the hospital did not spell out in its affidavit the exact sources of income and also its expenses in detail. The bench further took a note of the fact that the hospital did not initially reveal its fixed deposits in various banks, which are to the tune of over Rs 68 crores.
"The trust has shown reluctance to utilise the amount of Rs 68 crores on the ground that the same is earmarked by it for meeting capital expenditure. However, it is seeking urgent permission of this Court to utilise a sum specifically earmarked for the indigent and weaker section of the patients," Justice Kathawalla noted.
The bench further said the trust, instead of using the said Rs 3 crores, can exact the amount from its fixed deposits running into Rs 68 crores to tide over the financial difficulties claimed by them.
"Thus, the urgent relief sought to use the amount lying in the ‘Indigent Patients Fund’ is rejected. Needless to add that the trust is always free to use this amount to treat the indigent patients suffering from COVID-19 and from any other sickness," Justice Kathawalla held.
