Delhi courts direct over ₹9 lakh to family of Saket staffer who died by suicide

Within a span of a week, in a rare display of solidarity, the Delhi high court and district courts passed three judicial orders directing that more than ₹9 lakh paid by accused in unrelated cases be handed over to the kin of Harish, who was 60% differently abled and the sole breadwinner of his family comprising elderly parents and two siblings.

Help has poured in from unexpected quarters for the family of a 35-year-old specially abled Delhi court staffer, who died by suicide earlier this month, reportedly citing overwhelming work pressure.

Help has poured in from unexpected quarters for the family of a 35-year-old specially abled Delhi court staffer (Representative photo)

Within a span of a week, in a rare display of solidarity, the Delhi high court and district courts passed three judicial orders directing that more than ₹9 lakh paid by accused in unrelated cases be handed over to the kin of Harish, who was 60% differently abled and the sole breadwinner of his family comprising elderly parents and two siblings.

He worked as an ahlmad (court record keeper) and, in a note he left behind, he that he was under “extreme work pressure”. While he did not hold any individual responsible for his death, he wrote that managing the responsibilities of an ahlmad had become exceedingly difficult given his physical disability.

Last week, in two separate cases decided on January 19, additional chief judicial magistrate Mayank Goel of the Rouse Avenue courts directed that an amount of ₹8.75 lakh be deposited with the District and Sessions Courts Employees Welfare Association (DSEWA) for onward payment to Harish’s family.

In its order, the court observed: “As the deceased was unmarried, the said amount shall be handed over to the parents of the deceased by the Association as a small gesture of care from the institution, though the same cannot compensate for the loss.”

Of the two district court cases, one pertained to a matter under the Essential Commodities Act probed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) since 2010 against two individuals, Pankaj and Sameer Chawla, and their private firm Barkar Raj Laboratories. The compensation order formed part of the fine imposed on them after they were held guilty under the Act and for criminal conspiracy.

The other case related to a 2015 CBI matter against Avinash Kumar Gupta, Prashant Mishra and Ashish Verma. After being convicted of cheating and criminal conspiracy, they sought plea bargaining and were directed to pay the monetary amount as punishment.

The Delhi High Court also extended support to the staffer’s family. In an order passed on January 13 in a case arising from an FIR against a civil construction firm over a dispute relating to investment in a hydroelectric power project, a single-judge bench of Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma noted that the parties had resolved their differences amicably. The court directed that a sum of ₹75,000 be deposited with the DSEWA for payment to Harish’s family.

A senior court official, who did not wish to be named, said, “This is the first time that both the high court and district courts have passed such directions to grant compensation to the family of a deceased staffer through fines accumulated from separate cases.”

Arun Yadav, secretary general of the DSEWA, said, “The association is grateful for this noble gesture of the judiciary. The directions have been complied with and an amount of ₹9.5 lakh has been transferred to the family of the deceased staffer.”