RAM SARAN BHATIA Vs. STATE OF HARYANA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Challenge in this petition under Articles 226/227 of the Constitution of India by the petitioner is to the inaction on the part of the respondents in reimbursement of the medical bills submitted by the petitioner with a prayer for issuance of Mandamus directing the respondents to pay the said amount.

(2.) The petitioner was working as a Head Clerk in Public Works Department 'B&R), State Government of Haryana. He had joined the service on 13.11.1963 and was transferred to Karnal in the year 1996. Vijay Kumar, son of the petitioner, aged about 17 years, stated to be dependent upon the petitioner, developed some heart problem. He was shown to the local Government doctor and thereafter the petitioner took his son to the G.B. Pant Hospital, Delhi, where he had to be admitted from 8.2.1996 to 7.5.1996. It was found that two valves of the heart of the son of the petitioner were damaged and required immediate surgery. The surgeries were performed on him and he was finally discharged from the hospital on 7.5.1996. According to petitioner G.B. Pant Hospital is an approved hospital for treatment of Haryana Government employees and as such no prior permission of the Haryana Health Department, Chandiarh was required. The copies of the medical bills submitted totaled Rs. 1,52,694.19 to the department vide Annexures P.6 to P.8, annexed to the writ petition. The petitioner retired from service on 31.1.1998 but till date the amount claimed by the petitioner for the afore-stated treatment has not been reimbursed to the petitioner, thus, compelling him to file the present writ petition.

(3.) Upon notice, the respondents filed a reply. The basic contention raised on behalf of the respondents is that the petitioner's case does not fall within the ambit of the instructions/circular issued by the State of Haryana dated 19.11.1988 under the head "Recognition of the specialist Institutions for the purposes of medical reimbursement to the Haryana Govt. employees/pensioners." It is also stated that G.B. Pant Hospital is not a recognised institution for by-pass coronary surgery but the State Government of Haryana and the petitioner had not sought prior approval/sanction of the competent authority to avail of such benefit in that hospital. Rest of the averments have been vaguely denied.