JACOB PULIYEL versus UNION OF INDIA & ORS.

JACOB PULIYEL versus UNION OF INDIA & ORS.

Bodily integrity and personal autonomy are protected under Article 21 and no individual can be physically forced to be vaccinated; however the State may impose reasonable and proportionate limitations in furtherance of legitimate communitarian public health aims subject to the threefold Puttaswamy test (legality, legitimate aim/need, proportionality). The Union’s national vaccination policy is informed by relevant expert considerations and is not unreasonable, but State/UT vaccine mandates imposing restrictions on unvaccinated persons could not be shown by the Union or States to be proportionate given material before the Court indicating similar transmission risk from vaccinated and...

Parties
Petitioner: Jacob Puliyel; Respondent: Union of India; Respondent: Bharat Biotech; Respondent: Serum Institute of India
Jurisdiction
India
Judgment Date
02 May 2022
Procedural Posture
Writ Petition (civil) No. 607 of 2021 (article 32) / Judgment Delivered and Petition Disposed (02 May 2022)
Outcome
Writ petition disposed (02 May 2022)
Legal Topics
Vaccination Mandates, Bodily Integrity, Personal Autonomy, Clinical Trial Transparency, Adverse Events Following Immunisation (aefi), Judicial Review of Policy, Pediatric Vaccination, Article 21
Public Health Constitutional Law Administrative Law Health Law Evidence Vaccination Mandates Bodily Integrity Personal Autonomy +5 more

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Parties

Jacob Puliyel

Petitioner

Union of India

Respondent

Bharat Biotech

Respondent

Serum Institute of India

Respondent

Procedural Posture

Writ Petition (civil) No. 607 of 2021 (article 32) / Judgment Delivered and Petition Disposed (02 May 2022)

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether vaccine mandates and restrictions on unvaccinated individuals violate Article 21 and related fundamental rights
  2. 2 Whether segregation and disclosure of clinical trial data for COVID-19 vaccines must be mandated in public domain
  3. 3 Whether the AEFI monitoring and reporting system is faulty and requires reform

Ratio Decidendi

Bodily integrity and personal autonomy are protected under Article 21 and no individual can be physically forced to be vaccinated; however the State may impose reasonable and proportionate limitations in furtherance of legitimate communitarian public health aims subject to the threefold Puttaswamy test (legality, legitimate aim/need, proportionality). The Union’s national vaccination policy is informed by relevant expert considerations and is not unreasonable, but State/UT vaccine mandates imposing restrictions on unvaccinated persons could not be shown by the Union or States to be proportionate given material before the Court indicating similar transmission risk from vaccinated and...

Court Disposition

Writ petition disposed (02 May 2022)

Orders

  • Union of India directed to facilitate reporting of suspected adverse events by individuals and private doctors on an accessible virtual platform; such reports to be given unique identification numbers and made publicly accessible without personal/confidential data, and awareness/training steps to be undertaken by...
  • Union of India directed to ensure that relevant data required to be published under the extant statutory regime, the Good Clinical Practices guidelines and the WHO Statement on Clinical Trials are made available to the public without undue delay, subject to protection of privacy of individual subjects