UNION OF INDIA Vs. SATYANAND SINGH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) QUESTIONING the legal acceptability and presentableness of the order dated 20/04/2006 passed by the learned Single Judge in W.P. No. 6555/2001 the Appellants have invoked jurisdiction of intra court appeal envisaged under Section 2(1) of the Madhya Pradesh Uchcha Nyayalay (Khand Nyaypeeth of Appeal) Adhiniyam, 2005 [for brevity the Act'].

(2.) THE essential facts in a nutshell are that the Respondent, the original writ Petitioner, was serving on the post of Havildar and as he suffered from illness a Medical Board was constituted which examined him and on the recommendations of the Medical Board steps were being taken to discharge him from service. At that stage he invoked the extraordinary jurisdiction of this Court and during the pendency of the writ petition the order of discharge dated 26/12/2001 came into existence. The said Respondent prayed for quashment of both the orders and issue of a direction in the nature of mandamus to reinstate him in service with all consequential benefits.

(3.) IT was contended before the learned Single Judge that the provisions of Army Act, 1950 are applicable to the writ Petitioner and Section 192 of the said Act empowers the Central Government to make regulation other than those specified under Section 191 of the aforesaid Act. In pursuance of the power conferred on the Central Government it framed regulations, namely, Regulations for Army, 1987 [hereinafter referred to as the Regulations]. It was urged that the Respondent as discharged from service relying on para 355 of the Regulations though the said para is not attracted to the case at hand. It was put forth that the Respondent, according to the Medical Board had developed Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) which is a sexually transmitted disease (STD) for which an order of discharge could not be passed. The stance was founded on the proposition that unless the regulations provide a particular ground, the same cannot be taken recourse to by any kind of instructions/policy.