Indian Man Claims COVID Vaccine Killed His Daughter; Court Seeks Response from Bill Gates, Serum Institute

MUMBAI: Serum Institute of India (SII), the largest vaccine manufacturer in the world, has run into a legal tangle as the Bombay High Court has sought a response on a petition from a man who claimed that his daughter passed away due to "side effects" after getting injected with the Covishield vaccine for protection against COVID-19. Microsoft founder Bill Gates has also been asked to furnish a response regarding the same.

Dilip Lunwat, the petitioner, claimed that his daughter Snehal was forced to take the jab at her college in Nashik on January 28 as she fell under the category of "health worker"

Snehal, a doctor and a senior lecturer at SMBT dental college and hospital at Dhamangaon in Maharashtra, developed side effects after taking the jab, claimed Lunwat.

Days later, she suffered severe headache and vomiting and was rushed to a hospital where doctors found bleeding in her brain, the petition said, adding that Snehal passed on March 1 as a result of "side-effects from the vaccine."

Lunwat, whose petition relies on a report submitted by the Centre's adverse events following immunization (AEFI) committee, has also sought a response from the Union government, Maharashtra government and Drug Controller General of India.

A division bench of Justices S V Gangapurwala and Madhav Jamdar on August 26 issued a notice to all the respondents in the petition. The matter has been posted for hearing on November 17.

Apart from seeking a response from SII, the manufacturer of the vaccine, Aurangabad based Lunwat has also sought a response from Gates, whose foundation – the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation – had partnered with the SII to accelerate the process of manufacturing and delivering 100 million doses of the vaccine during the pandemic.

In his petition, Lunwat sought justice for his daughter and "many more people who are likely to be murdered" due to similar cases of adverse effects.

Meanwhile, SII is preparing to roll out a vaccine meant to immunize against the Omicron variant of COVID-19. CEO Adar Poonawalla has said that the vaccine should be available within 6 months.

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