Himachal Pradesh High Court
Abhay Gautam vs Union Of India & Others on 25 August, 2025
Author: Ajay Mohan Goel
Bench: Ajay Mohan Goel
2025:HHC:28703
IN THE HIGH COURT OF HIMACHAL PRADESH, SHIMLA
CWP No.10935 of 2025 a/w
.
CWP No.12586 of 2025
Decided on: 25.08.2025
CWP No.10935 of 2025
Abhay Gautam ... Petitioner
Versus
Union of India & others ... Respondents
CWP No.12586 of 2025
Anjali Sharma (minor) aged 17 years ... Petitioner
Versus
Union of India & others ... Respondents
Coram
Hon'ble Mr. Justice Ajay Mohan Goel, Judge.
Whether approved for reporting?1Yes
____________________________________________________ _
For the petitioner(s) : M/s Aman Parth Sharma, Rishab
Negi and H.M. Thakur, Advocates, in
both the petitions.
For the respondents : Mr. Balram Sharma, Deputy Solicitor
General of India, for respondents No.1
and 3, in both the petitions.
Mr. Sumit Sharma, Deputy
Advocate General, for respondents
No.2 and 6-State, in both the
petitions.
Mr. Vinod Chauhan, Advocate, for
respondents No.4 and 5, in both the
petitions.
Mr. Sandeep Kumar Pandey, Advocate,
for respondent No.7, in CWP
No.12586 of 2025.
Ajay Mohan Goel, Judge (Oral)
In both these petitions, similar issues of fact and law are
Whether reporters of the local papers may be allowed to see the judgment?
2025:HHC:28703
involved and therefore, they are being disposed of vide common
judgment.
.
2. The petitioners in these writ petitions are siblings, being
brother and sister. They are the candidates who have participated in
the NEET examination and are seeking admission in MBBS courses
in the Medical Colleges in the State of Himachal Pradesh. They are
seeking admission in terms of the communication issued by the
Government of India, Ministry of Defence, Department of Ex-
Servicemen Welfare, dated 21.05.2018, appended as Annexure P-4,
with CWP No.10935 of 2025, which provides as under:-
"F.No.6(1)/2017/D(Res.II)
Government of India
Ministry of Defence
Department of Ex-Servicemen Welfare
Room No.237 'B' Wing
Sena Bhawan, New Delhi
May 21, 2018
To
The Chief Secretaries/Administrators
All States/UTs
Subject: Inter-se priority for reservation/preference
to the wards of Armed Forces personnel by
States /UTs for admission to
Medical/Professional/Non-Professional
Courses.
Approval of the Competent Authority is conveyed to
the removal of Yudh Sewa Medal series of Awards i.e.
Sarvottam Yudh Seva Medal, Uttam Yudh Seva Medal and
Yudh Seva Medal from Category V of the priority list for
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reservations/preferences to the wards of Armed Forces
personnel by States/UTs/Central/State
.
Universities/Autonomous Institutions for admission
medical/professional/non-professional courses. The
revised list of priorities will be as follows:-
Priority 1: Widows/Wards of Defence personnel killed
in action.
Priority II: Wards of disabled in action and boarded out
from service
Priority III: Widows/Wards of Defence personnel who
died while in service with death attributable
r to military service.
Priority IV: Wards of disabled in service and boarded
out with disability attributable to military
service.
Priority V: Wards of Ex-Servicemen and serving
personnel who are in receipt of Gallantry
Awards:
i. Param Vir Chakra
ii. Ashok Chakra
iii. Maha Vir Chakra
iv. Kirti Chakra
v. Vir Chakra
vi. Shaurya Chakra
vii. Sena, Nau Sena, Vayu Sena Medal
viii. Mention-in-Despatches.
Priority VI: Wards of Ex-Servicemen.
Priority VII: Wives of:
i) defence personnel disabled in action and
boarded out from service.
ii) defence personnel disabled in service and
boarded out with disability attributable to
military service.
iii) ex-Servicemen and serving personnel who
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are in receipt of Gallantry Awards,
Priority VIII: Wards of Serving Personnel.
.
Priority IX: Wives of Serving Personnel.
2. This issues with the approval of Hon'ble Raksha
Mantri and supersedes our earlier letters of even number
dated 19.05.2017 and 30.11.2017 on the subject.
(Santosh)
Joint Secretary (Res.II)
Tel.Tel. 23015772"
3. According to the petitioners, they are entitled for
admission, in terms of contents of Annexure P-3 under Priority-III as
mentioned in Communication dated 21.05.2018 (supra). Annexure
P-3 reads as under:-
"ISSUE CERTIFICATE REGARDING PHYSICAL CASUALTY
WITH ATTRIBUTABLE TO MILITARY SERVICE
1. Refer to your letter No Nii dated 04 Jun 2024
2. Duly verified and Physical Casualty Certificate in
respect of your husband No 137571881 Sep Late Jai
Prakash Gautam are forwarded herwith for your
information.
Lt. Col.
Senior Record Officer
for OIC Records.
Copy to:-
Zila Sainik Welfare Officer for your information.
Distt.-Bilaspur
State- Himachal Pradesh
PHYSICAL CASUALTY CERTIFICATE
2025:HHC:28703
It is intimated that No 13757188L Sep Late Jai
Prakash Gautam had died due to "SUDDEN CARDIAC
.
ARREST" on: 06 May 2022 during DSC service. The
death has been declared as Attributable to Millitary
Service.
Station: C/o 56 ΑΡΟ Lt. Col.
Date: 28 Jun 2024 Senior Record Officer
for OIC Records."
However, according to the respondents, the petitioners are entitled
4. to
for admission under Priority-VI i.e. Wards of Ex-Servicemen.
The petitioners are children of late Shri Jai Prakash
Gautam. Jai Prakash Gautam was enrolled with the Indian Army on
26.04.1994 and he retired from the rank of Havaldar on 30.04.2020,
which is the date of his discharge. Thereafter, he was again
appointed as a Sepoy in the Defence Security Corp, wherein only
Ex-Servicemen are appointed and he died while serving as such on
06.05.2022.
5. In terms of Annexure P-2 and P-3, appended with the
writ filed by Abhay Gautam, the death of their father has been
mentioned to be attributable to the military service.
6. Annexure P-2 appended with this writ petition is a
communication issued by the Office of Principal Controller of
Defence Accounts (Pensions), Prayagraj and Column-9 thereof reads
as under:-
"9. Attributable to Military Service or other wise
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(ATTRIBUTABLE TO MILITARY SERVICE)"
.
7. Similarly, Annexure P-3 is the certificate issued by
Senior Record Officer for OIC Records, dated to 28.06.2024 and it is
clearly mentioned in the said certificate, which is a Physical Casualty
Certificate that Sepoy Late Jai Prakash Gautam died due to sudden
Cardiac Arrest on 06.05.2022 during DSC service and the death has
been declared as attributable to Military Service.
8. Whereas the contention of learned Counsel for the
petitioners is that the documents appended with the petition clearly
demonstrate that the death of the father of the petitioners is
attributable to Military Service and the denial of the consideration to
the petitioners for admission under Priority-III is discriminatory.
Learned Deputy Solicitor General of India, while referring to the
reply filed on behalf of respondents No.1 to 3 submitted that late
Havaldar Jai Prakash retired from the Indian Army on 30.04.2020
and his status as from the said date became that of an
Ex-Serviceman and his subsequent re-engagement did not convert
the said status, therefore, as he was an Ex-Serviceman with effect
from 30.04.2020, his children will only fall under Priority-VI, which
relates to the ward of Ex-Serviceman and the respondents are not
denying the benefit of this priority to the petitioners. Learned
Deputy Solicitor General also urged that as far as Priority-III is
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concerned, the same is available only to those Military men who died
while in active service on the board of the Armed Forces. According
.
to him, herein as the unfortunate death of the father of the
petitioners took place after he was discharged from the Indian Army
and while he was engaged by Defence Security Corp, therefore, his
death cannot be said to be attributable to the Military Service.
9. I have heard learned Counsel for the petitioners as also
learned Deputy Solicitor General of India and have also carefully
gone through the pleadings as well as the documents appended
therewith.
10. Herein, the Court is dealing with the children of
deceased Havaldar/Sepoy, who firstly served the Indian Army from
the year 1994 to 2020 and after he was discharged from the
Indian Army, he served the Defence Security Corps from the date
of his engagement till he died on 06.05.2022.
11. In terms of Annexure P-4, dated 21.05.2018, nine
priorities are created with regard to inter se priority for
reservation/preference to the wards of Armed forces personnel by
State/UTs for admission to medical/professional/non-professional
courses. Priority-1 relates to widows/wards of defence personnel
killed in action, Priority-II relates to wards of disabled in action
and boarded out from service, Priority-III relates to widows/wards
of defence personnel who died while in service with death
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attributable to Military Service. Priority-VI relates to wards of Ex-
Servicemen.
.
12. Now, here the moot issue is as to whether in the
peculiar facts of these cases, can the petitioners be treated to be
the wards of defence personnel who died while in service with
death attributable to Military Service or not.
13. This Court is of the considered view that as Annexures
P-2 and P-3, appended with CWP No.10935 of 2025, clearly
demonstrate that the death of the father of the petitioners as per
the employer of the late father of the petitioners, was attributable
to Military Service, therefore, neither this Court nor the
respondents can substitute their view for the view of the employer.
14. It is not the case of the respondents that these
certificates were procured or obtained by the petitioners with the
intent to gain admission in MBBS Courses. This view could have
been possible had these certificates been issued by the Authorities
concerned recently, but the certificates were issued in due course
and the Service Book of the deceased father of the petitioners
which is at Page-21 of the Paper Book and has been prepared in
due course, also mentions the cause of death of the father of the
petitioners as "attributable to the Military Service" in Clause-9.
15. Therefore, in these circumstances when the employer
of the late father of the petitioners has itself issued certificates and
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has entered into the Service Book of the deceased father of the
petitioners, that his death was "attributable to the Military
.
Service", obviously, the petitioners are entitled to be considered
under Priority-III and the act of the respondents of considering
them only under Priority-VI is not sustainable in the eyes of law.
There is no challenge to the certificates issued by the employer of
the late father of the petitioners. Therefore, they have to be taken
and accepted as they are. Respondents cannot ignore them. They
cannot read the certificates so as to give a different meaning to the
contents thereof other than tmentioned in the certificates.
16. Accordingly, these writ petitions are allowed. The act
of the respondents of not considering the petitoiners under
Priority-III of Annexure P-4 is held to be bad. The respondents are
directed to consider the cases of the petitioners under Priority-III
for the purpose of admission to the MBBS Courses by treating
them as wards of the defence personnel, who died while is service.
Taking into consideration the fact that in terms of the instructions
in vogue, as is evident from Annexure P-8, appended with CWP
No.10935 of 2025, only one ward of the defence personnel who
died while in service, can be considered under Priority-III, it is
observed that though both the petitioners will initially be
considered under Priority-III, but in case both of them succeed,
then the benefit will be only given to one of them on the basis of
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merit or as per the options that may be exercised by the
petitioners. However, the other ward obviously then would be
.
entitled to be considered under Priority-VI, which right of the
petitioners is also protected.
17. The petitions stand disposed of in above terms.
Pending miscellaneous application(s), if any also stand disposed of
accordingly.
(Ajay Mohan Goel)
Judge
August 25, 2025
(Rishi)
