The Hosdurg Sub Court in Kerala has ordered the confiscation of the vehicle of the Revenue Divisional Officer (RDO) for failing to pay the compensation awarded to a housewife, Kamalakshi. Kamalakshi had lost her eyesight during a surgery at the Kanhangad district hospital in 1995. After years of legal battle, the court had ordered a compensation of ₹2 lakh to her in 2018. But she had to approach the court again in 2019 as the verdict was not implemented.

The government appealed against the court’s order in the High Court, and as collateral, the district hospital’s jeep was given to the Hozdurg Sub Court during the appeal process. However, when the government’s appeal was rejected by the High Court, the hospital’s jeep was confiscated last month.

Due to the delay in providing compensation, the amount has now accrued to ₹8 lakh, including interest. The court ordered the confiscation of the RDO’s jeep as Kamalakshi did not want the almost unusable jeep of the Health department valued at ₹30,000 by the Motor Vehicles department (MVD).