Court No. - 38
Case :- WRIT - A No. - 10303 of 2019 Petitioner :- Amit Kumar Respondent :- State Of U.P. And 3 Others Counsel for Petitioner :- Suresh Bahadur Singh,Sanjeev Singh Counsel for Respondent :- C.S.C.
Hon'ble Ashwani Kumar Mishra,J.
Following orders were passed in the matter on 18.7.2019:-
"Instructions obtained in terms of the order dated 11.07.2019 fails to answer the grievance raised in this petition. It is not clear as to how petitioner's candidature could be ignored at the stage of training on the ground that his height is found short. It is not in issue that petitioner qualified the physical standard test, thereafter, he was sent for medical examination which also was cleared by the petitioner. It would be difficult for the respondents to explain as to how petitioner could be declared short in height particularly in view of the law laid down by this Court in Bhanu Pratap Rajput Vs. State of U.P. and others in Writ Petition No. 14195 of 2018.
Before proceeding further, it would be appropriate to direct respondent no. 4 to file his personal affidavit after examining the aforesaid issues.
Post as fresh once again on 30th July, 2019."
Learned Standing Counsel has obtained instructions. An affidavit of the Senior Superintendent of Police, Gorakhpur has been filed, according to which, petitioner's height was found short during the course of training. No provision under the Rules is shown to the Court, wherein the measurement of height can be determined during the course of training. Selection of a candidate on the post of Constable is to be made in accordance with the 'Uttar Pradesh Police Constable and Head Constable Service Rules, 2015'.
Reliance is placed upon a judgment of this Court in WRIT - A No. - 14195 of 2018 (Bhanu Pratap Rajput Vs. State Of U.P. And 5 Others), wherein following proposition has been laid down:-
"In view of the aforesaid discussions, the inescapable conclusion is that the respondents were not justified in declaring the petitioner to be medically unfit on the ground that he does not possess physical standard specified in Appendix - 2, even after a declaration by the competent authority in terms of Appendix - 2 that petitioner possesses physical standards as prescribed in the Rules. The report of the medical board, to the extent it declares the petitioner to be short in height and having incomplete chest expansion, stands quashed. Since the medical board has, otherwise, not found the petitioner to be suffering from any deficiency and petitioner possesses physical standards specified in the Rules, as such, he is entitled to be considered for appointment to the post of Constable.
The writ petition succeeds and is allowed.
Once a candidate has been found to be possessing requisite height in accordance Rules of 2015 at the stage of Physical Standard Test, it would not be open for the authorities to hold him unfit on account of short height at a subsequent stage. In that view of the matter and in view of the law laid down by this Court in Bhanu Pratap Rajput (supra), this petition is liable to succeed. It is not in dispute that the petitioner's height was found to be within the permissible limit specified in the Rules at the time of Physical Standard Test.
Writ petition according succeeds and is allowed and a direction is issued to the respondents to allow the petitioner to complete the training and his candidature would not be non-suited on account of the fact that his height is found short at the time of training.
Order Date :- 30.7.2019 n.u.