LPA No. 1303 of 2010 (O&M) -1- IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB AND HARYANA AT CHANDIGARH LPA No. 1303 of 2010 (O&M) Date of Decision 18.01.2011 Union of India and others -----Appellants Versus Ex-Sep. Charan Singh (Retd.) ---Respondent CORAM: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE M.M. KUMAR HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE T.P.S. MANN Present: Mr. Aman Chaudhary, Advocate for the appellants. 1. To be referred to the Reporters or not? 2. Whether the judgment should be reported in the Digest? M.M. KUMAR, J. 1. The instant appeal filed under Clause X of the Letters Patent is directed against the judgment dated 07.08.2009 rendered by the learned Single Judge holding that the rejection of claim of the writ petitioner-respondent for disability pension was quashed and consequently, the respondents-appellant were directed to work out the disability pension @ 60% payable to him, as was recommended by the Release Medical Board. 2. It has come on record that the Medical Board has opined in favour of the writ petitioner-respondent and the learned Single Judge has placed reliance on a Division Bench of Delhi High Court rendered in the case of A.J.S. Chaudhary v. Union of India and others, 1999 (1) RSJ 778, wherein the view taken is that once the Ex-serviceman is found without any disease then disease would necessarily be LPA No. 1303 of 2010 (O&M) -2- attributable to military service. However, the more appropriate view for disposal of the instant appeal can be extracted from the judgment of Hon'ble the Supreme Court rendered in the case of Secretary, Ministry of Defence and others v. A.V. Damodaran, (2009) 9 SCC 140. It has been observed by Hon'ble the Supreme Court that once the expert body like Medical Board has expressed an opinion then it has to be given due weightage, value and credence. The departmental authorities or the courts would be very slow to substitute the opinion of the medical board with their own opinion. In that regard, reliance may be placed on a Division Bench judgment of this Court rendered in the case of Union of India v. Mohinder Singh (LPA No. 745 of 2010, decided on 02.07.2010). 3. Having heard the learned counsel for the appellant, we are of the view that once the medical board has opined then there was no opportunity for the Controller of Defence Accounts (Pension) PCDA(P), Allahabad to decline the claim made by the writ petitioner-respondent. There is, thus, no merit in this appeal warranting admission. 4. Accordingly, the appeal fails and the same is dismissed. 5. In view of the dismissal of the appeal on merit, we do not wish to pass any order seeking condonation of 302 days' delay in filing of the appeal. (M.M. KUMAR) JUDGE (T.P.S. MANN) JUDGE January 18, 2011 Atul