MUMBAI, June 9 -- Holding the state government responsible for failing to protect a patient admitted to Pune's Yerwada Mental Hospital, the Bombay High Court on Monday directed it to pay Rs.22 lakh compensation to the widow and children of a man who was beaten to death by another inmate in 2013. A division bench of Justices Manish Pitale and Shriram V. Shirsat said the state had failed in its duty of care towards patients under its custody and was "clearly responsible" for the violation of the fundamental rights of the deceased and the consequential violation of the rights of his family. The court was hearing a petition filed by the deceased's widow and children seeking compensation for alleged negligence by hospital authorities. The petitioner contended that her husband's death amounted to a "custodial death" as he was under the care and supervision of a state-run mental health facility. The deceased, who suffered from schizophrenia, was admitted to Yerwada Mental Hospital in 2013. On November 21 that year, his family was informed that he had been fatally assaulted the previous night by another patient. Hospital authorities later admitted that the incident occurred when there was inadequate staff on duty. The woman subsequently approached the high court seeking Rs.29 lakh compensation. The state acknowledged the incident and informed the court that only three attendants were on duty in the ward, which housed 72 patients. However, it argued that compensation should be restricted to Rs.7 lakh. Rejecting the state's stand, the bench noted that the number of attendants was "woefully inadequate." It took into account the deceased's income, loss of dependency and the fact that the deceased's son suffers from mental disability and directed the state to pay the total compensation of Rs.22 lakh within eight weeks....