The Delhi High Court on Wednesday has instructed the city government to expedite the process of filling vacant positions for non-official members of the Delhi Mental Health Authority.
A bench, led by Acting Chief Justice Vibhu Bakhru and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela, emphasized that once the authority is formed, it must swiftly establish review boards in accordance with the Mental Health Care Act.
The court clarified that the process of forming the authority and review boards should not be hindered by the Model Code of Conduct in light of the upcoming Delhi Assembly elections. The order was issued on December 12 in response to two petitions seeking the enforcement of provisions of the Mental Health Care Act, including the constitution of the state mental health authority and district mental health review boards.
The court noted that on November 27, the Delhi government had appointed seven ex-officio members to the Delhi Mental Health Authority. However, it was mentioned that the non-official members would be selected later. The bench directed the government to take swift action to fill the non-official positions and ensured that once the authority is formed, it would act quickly to establish the review boards as required by Sections 73 and 74 of the Act.
Petitioners were granted the liberty to revive their cases if the authority fails to meet the deadlines. On November 25, the High Court had already ordered the Delhi government to appoint the ex-officio members of the state mental health authority within a week.
Advocate Amit Sahni, one of the petitioners, argued that the objective of the Mental Health Act is to provide mental healthcare services and safeguard the rights of individuals with mental illnesses. He called for the establishment of the state mental health authority and district mental health review boards.
Another petitioner, Shreyus Sukhija, also sought the formation of the authority in line with the legal requirements. Sahni further highlighted that Section 73 of the Act mandates the creation of mental health review boards at the district level or for a group of districts, as specified in the new legislation.
