Funds not given to hospitals, Punjab and Haryana HC orders attachment of officials’ pay

The Punjab and Haryana High Court has called for details of expenses incurred by the state of Punjab on advertising in print and audio-video media, renovating houses and offices for ministers, MLAs and class-I officers, and the purchase of new vehicles, including their make, for them.

The court also ordered the attachment or withholding of salaries of senior Punjab health officials, including an IAS officer, following the state’s failure to disburse to hospitals Rs 350 crore received from the Centre under the Ayushman Bharat Scheme.

The officers whose salaries have been ordered to be attached are Principal Secretary of Health Kumar Rahul, CEO of the State Health Agency Babita, Director Deepak and Deputy Director Sharanjit Kaur. The order will remain in effect at least till the next hearing scheduled for mid-October.

Justice Vinod S Bhardwaj asserted that the information was sought to examine whether funds/grants received for specific purposes were being misapplied or misutilised. “The state, having received money for any specified purpose, is a custodian of money only to release it to the actual beneficiaries and certainly cannot be permitted to retain the amount leaving the citizens litigating for their dues and misappropriate the said grants at the costs of the actual recipient,” the court observed.

Justice Bhardwaj was hearing a petition filed against the state and other respondents by Indian Medical Association Punjab and other petitioners through senior counsel DS Patwalia and advocate Adityajit Singh Chadha.

The Bench noted the petitioners were hospitals/medical institutions registered under the Ayushman Bharat Scheme and were seeking release of pending dues/bills of more than Rs 500 crore. The liability had been acknowledged, but only about Rs 26 crore had been released.

Justice Bhardwaj noted Additional Solicitor-General Satya Pal Jain’’’’s contention that the Centre was to reimburse 60 per cent of the medical bills and had already released Rs 355.48 crore to the state government. The responsibility to disburse the funds, along with their own dues, rested with the state health agencies. “The state has not only not released its own share but also misutilised the share already released by the Union of India,” Jain added.

“What is surprising is that even though more than Rs 350 crore has been claimed to be released by the Union of India, the amount received by state of Punjab/state health agency from the Union of India has not been disbursed and they have unlawfully retained the amount,” Justice Bhardwaj asserted.

The court tentatively noted the lack of a satisfactory explanation for the failure to release payments and the circumstances under which the state government withheld the funds. It also directed the filing of an affidavit detailing payments made against the bills.

The state was also instructed to provide details on litigation expenses for pursuing matters before the Supreme Court or Delhi High Court on behalf of the state or any other agency associated with Punjab. Additionally, the state was asked to outline expenditures on social welfare schemes, such as free electricity and the Atta-Dal Scheme, in comparison to the budgetary allocations.