The Court of Appeal has ruled in favour of former minister Devant Maharaj in his legal battle against the Ministry of Health over access to information regarding the illegal importation of a drug that caused several individuals to lose their eyesight in 2019.

In a unanimous decision, Justices of Appeal Prakash Moosai, Mira Dean-Armorer, and Eleanor Donaldson-Honeywell quashed the ministry’s refusal to disclose certain details requested under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), ordering the ministry to reconsider its decision within 42 days.

Maharaj filed an FOIA request in December 2019 seeking information about the seizure of the unregistered drug N-Cort Triamcinolone Acetonide Injection, which led to cases of permanent blindness.