The Supreme Court has taken suo motu cognizance of a critical case concerning public access to life-saving medicines and the necessity of judicial expediency in matters involving the Right to Life under Article 21 of the Constitution.

The intervention was prompted by a staggering delay in the Kerala High Court, where a writ petition faced adjournment 57 times, culminating in the tragic demise of the patient before the core legal issues could be adjudicated.

Although the Counsel for the State of Kerala submitted that the newly formed State Government subsequently imported and provided the required medicines to the patient, the demise occurred before the core legal issues could be resolved.

The Bench of Chief Justice Surya Kant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi and Justice V Mohana said, "Issue Notice returnable on so and so date. Counsel permitted to intervene and assist the court. Meanwhile, we request Honorable Chief Justice of Kerala High Court to ensure that Writ Petition No. 18999 of 2022 pending before that High Court is decided expeditiously."

 Chief Justice Kant said, "The media report says 57 times it has been adjourned."

Counsel for the State of Kerala submitted, "The medicines has been provided. The new state government, after taking the charge, they imported the medicines and it have been provided to the patients."

During the hearing, Senior Advocate Anand Grover sought intervention, highlighting that the case presented a much larger, systemic crisis regarding the exorbitant pricing and unaffordability of patented life-saving drugs in the country.

It was argued that while the Central Government possessed the statutory power to grant compulsory licenses under the Patents Act, such powers were drastically underutilized, with only a single license issued since 2005.

He submitted, "This is a huge problem now. Most of the new medicines are patented. They are unaffordable. The government has the power under the Patents Act to compulsorily license. Only one license has been issued from 2005. That too in a private dispute where I appeared."

He urged the Bench to expand the horizon of the matter beyond the facts of the individual case to address these macro-level structural bottlenecks.

The Bench was informed that the High Court of Kerala had already registered a suo motu Public Interest Litigation (PIL) titled "In Re: Exorbitant Pricing of Life Saving Patented Medicines". Following the tragic demise of the original petitioner, the High Court expanded the scope of its proceedings into a broader PIL to address the systemic issue. Counsel submitted that a definitive adjudication by the High Court could provide a foundational framework for guidelines enforceable on a Pan-India basis.

Chief Justice Kant said, "Initially I was reluctant to take suo motu, I thought that let the High Court take a view. But then ultimately it was reported to me that matter is not being decided."

However, taking cognizance of the persistent delays and the non-disposal of the matter despite dozens of listings, the Bench deemed it necessary to intervene.

Consequently, the Supreme Court permitted the application for intervention, issued formal notice on the larger pan-India issue of medicine accessibility, and requested the Chief Justice of the Kerala High Court to ensure an expeditious disposal of the pending writ petition.

Cause Title: in Re: Access to Life-Saving Medicines and Judicial Expediency in Article 21 Matters [SMW(C) No. 19/2026]

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