Justice V. K. Bali, Chairman:
Candidature of Kamlesh Meena, the applicant herein, for the post of Constable (Exe.) Male in Delhi Police has been cancelled vide order dated 20.12.2010. It is this order which is under challenge in the present Original Application filed by him under Section 19 of the Administrative Tribunals Act, 1985.
2. Brief facts of the case as projected in the pleadings of the parties and accompanying documents reveal that the respondents initiated recruitment to the post of Constable (Exe.) Male for the year 2009-10. Whereas, the applicant cleared all the tests, in the medical examination he was found unfit due to ‘coronal hypospadius with cardoe’. It is the case of the applicant that the medical problem as mentioned above is temporary and can be rectified by undergoing minor corrective surgery, which, of course, he has since undergone. When asked by the respondents as to whether he would like to challenge the findings of the medical board, the applicant instead prayed for grant of time for his re-medical examination in the month of February, 2010. Despite that, show cause notice dated 19.10.2010 came to be issued to him for cancellation of his candidature. The applicant responded to the show cause notice vide his reply dated 29.10.2010, but, as mentioned above, vide the impugned order dated 20.12.2010, his candidature has been cancelled. Whereas, learned counsel representing the applicant would contend that the respondents should have taken a more realistic view and public employment should not have been refused to the applicant, particularly, when he had passed all the tests and his medical problem was also temporary, which has indeed been corrected by corrective surgery, learned counsel representing the respondents would state that the applicant was given chance to appeal for constitution of a second medical board within one month, and once the applicant would not even challenge the findings in that regard, the respondents were justified in rejecting his candidature.
3. We have heard the learned counsel representing the parties and with their assistance examined the records of the case.
4. The matter herein is of taking a particular view. Having pondered over the issue, we are of the view that a more realistic decision would have been to give a chance to the applicant for his re-medical examination after the corrective surgery. It is not a case where there may have been a long gap from the time when the respondents asked the applicant to challenge the findings of the medical board if he thought so, and when the applicant went through the corrective surgery. The applicant was found medically unfit due to coronal hypospadius with cardoe on 10.02.2010. He underwent corrective surgery, which was in two phases, in February and March, 2010 at S.M.S. Hospital, Jaipur. The documents in that regard have been placed on records at Annexure A-4 (colly.). He submitted an application to the respondents on 05.03.2010 for grant of time for his re-medical examination. The applicant would not hear anything in that regard. The applicant also made personal visits to the office of the respondents in the months of June-July, 2010. It is on 19.10.2010 that the applicant received a show cause notice, by which time he had already undergone the corrective surgery. The applicant on 29.10.2010 specifically requested for his re-medical examination, but vide impugned order dated 20.12.2010, the respondents would cancel his candidature. If the respondents had given chance to the applicant to challenge the findings of the medical board declaring him medically unfit, they could as well give him a chance to be re-medically examined after he underwent the corrective surgery. It was never the case of the applicant that the findings of the medical board declaring him unfit would be incorrect. He had, it appears, accepted the said finding, as after the surgery, he approached for re-medical examination. If the respondents were prepared to give him chance to challenge the findings of the medical board, they could have given him a chance for re-medical examination as well.
5. For the reasons as mentioned above, we allow this Original Application with direction to the respondents to get the applicant re-medically examined, and if he may be found medically fit, to give him appointment on the post of Constable (Exe.) Male. Let the exercise as ordained above, be completed as expeditiously as possible, but definitely within a period of six weeks of receipt of copy of this order. There shall, however, be no order as to costs.