IN THE HIGH COURT OF HIMACHAL PRADESH, SHIMLA CWP No.583 of 2007 Date of decision: 6th November, 2008. Chander Shekhar ..Petitioner Versus Union of India and others ..Respondents Coram The Hon’ble Mr. Justice Deepak Gupta, Judge. The Hon’ble Mr. Justice V.K.Ahuja, Judge. Whether approved for reporting?1 No For the Petitioner.: Mr. Rajiv Jiwan, Advocate For the Respondents: Mr.Janesh Mahajan, C.G.S.C. Deepak Gupta, J. (Oral) By means of this writ petition, the petitioner has prayed that the order dated 1.2.2007 declaring the petitioner medically unfit for the post of Head Constable (Ministerial) may be quashed and set-aside and the respondent be directed to appoint him Head Constable (Ministerial). Brief facts relevant for decision of the case are that the respondents invited applications for filling up the post of Head Constable (Ministerial) in the Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB). It is not disputed that the petitioner applied for the said post. He was issued an admit card 1 Whether the reporters of the local papers may be allowed to see the Judgment?yes 2 and he appeared in the written, physical and interview tests. It is the admitted case that he cleared all the tests. On 26th January, 2007 the petitioner appeared in the medical test and he was declared to be medically unfit due to “Pulmonary Kochs”. The petitioner was informed about the result of the medical test and was directed to file an appeal in the prescribed proforma if he was aggrieved by such order declaring him to be medically unfit. The proforma for the appeal includes a medical fitness certificate to be issued by some independent medical practitioner. The petitioner got himself examined from Dr.R.S. Negi, Registrar, Department of Pulmonary Medicine, IGMC, Shimla on 26th February, 2007. A medical certificate was issued by the aforesaid authority who after investigation opined that there was no evidence of any active tuberculosis and the scar (lesion) on the chest is old. Thereafter, the petitioner was examined by a Review Medical Board on April 2, 2007. An X-ray of the chest was got done in the GMR Institute of Imaging & Research, MRI Scan Centre, New Delhi. In this the opinion was given that the petitioner has bilateral koch’s lesions. However, the opinion was that this may be correlated clinically. Without any further clinical examination, the respondents rejected the appeal of the 3 petitioner. He thereafter filed this petition before this Court. During the course of the petition, the respondents prayed that they may be permitted to conduct further investigation to clinically find out whether the petitioner was suffering from Tuberculosis or not. Accordingly, blood and sputum tests were conducted on the petitioner. Report of this investigation has been placed on record along with the supplementary affidavits dated 25th June, 2008 and 26th September, 2008. Both the tests have given negative reports and there is no evidence or material on record to show that the petitioner is suffering from any pulmonary disease much less tuberculosis. It is apparent that the lesions (scars) found on the lungs of the petitioner are old scars as opined by Dr.R.S. Negi. There is no evidence whatsoever to indicate that the petitioner is suffering from any illness at this stage. The investigation done by the respondents themselves, during the pendency of the petition, clearly shows that the petitioner is fit to join service. Consequently, we quash the orders declaring him to be medically unfit and direct the respondents to consider the case of the appointment of the petitioner by treating him 4 to be medically fit. Follow up action be taken within two months from today. The petition is disposed of in the aforesaid terms with no order as to costs. ( Deepak Gupta ), J. November 6, 2008. ( V. K. Ahuja ), J. PV