Hakim Seikh suffered serious head injuries and brain haemorrhaging after a fall from a train and was shuttled from hospital to hospital due to lack of bed space. After more than 24 hours he was finally admitted to a private hospital where he received care. Paschim Banag Khet Samity, an organization of agricultural labourers to which Seikh belonged, sued the State of West Bengal on Seikh’s behalf for violating his right to life under the Constitution.

The Court held that the right to emergency medical care is a critical component of the right to health which is in turn a part of the right to life. Given that, the Court found that public hospitals which failed to treat a person with serious injuries as a matter of urgency as in the case of Seikh violated the right to life. The Court further noted that the state’s obligation to provide emergency medical care under the right to life could not be avoided by pleading financial constraints.

The Court ordered compensation and provided a blueprint for required primary health care services under the Constitution to the State of West Bengal. The Court also indicated that other states as well as the national government should implement the blueprint.

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