The High Court of Delhi was dealing with the Petition filed by a physically disabled candidate seeking a direction to create an independent Appellate Medical Disability Board to conduct his medical examination in order to determine the percentage of disability from which he claims to be suffering.
The petitioner is a physically disabled candidate who cleared the Civil Services Examination, 2020 by securing a rank of 755. He has approached the Court seeking a direction to the respondent to constitute an independent Appellate Medical Disability Board which does not comprise of doctors either from All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) or Safdarjung Hospital, to conduct his medical examination in order to determine the percentage of disability from which he claims to be suffering.
The grievance of the petitioner is that once the Medical Board comprising of doctors at Safdarjung Hospital had declared his disability to be less than 40% in its initial medical examination report, which report was subsequently certified by the doctors of AIIMS. He apprehends that he may not be treated fairly if his Appellate Medical Examination was conducted by doctors associated with any of these two hospitals.
The learned counsel for the petitioner had drawn the court’s attention on clause 2.1 of the Regulations relating to the physical examination of candidates, as contained in Appendix III of the Civil Services Examination Rules, 2020, to contend that the medical examination of the petitioner by the Appellate Board could be easily conducted at any of the other hospitals referred to in the said clause. The learned counsel in support of his plea has relied on para 7(a)(xiii) of the Regulations, containing general guidelines to be followed by Medical Boards which said that he is entitled to claim that his Appellate Medical Examination should be conducted by a Medical Board comprised of doctors from a designated hospital other than the ones in which his initial medical examination was conducted.
The Court stated that “there is no reason as to why the petitioner should be compelled to undergo the appellate medical examination at AIIMS and that too when there are various other designated hospitals referred in the Regulations forming part of the Rules as contained in Appendix III thereof. In this manner the petitioner’s apprehension of not being treated fairly can be easily put to rest. The said clause which gives a list of designated hospitals includes various other hospitals, besides Safdurjung Hospital and AIIMS.”
The HC allowed the writ petition.
Bench: Hon'ble Ms. Justice Rekha Palli
Case Title: Shubham Agarwal v. Union Of India
Case Details: W.P.(C) 11809/2021 & CM APPL. 36538/2021
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