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2007 DIGILAW 59 (DEL)

EX. HAV. KARAN SINGH YADAV v. UNION OF INDIA

2007-01-11

G.S.SISTANI, SWATANTER KUMAR

body2007
SWATANTER KUMAR, J. ( 1 ) THE petitioner in this petition claims disability pension after his invalidation from Armed Forces due to the disease of 'schizophrenia' with 20% disability after he had rendered 19 years 4 months of military service, with effect from 1. 5. 2003. According to the petitioner, he was enrolled in the army on 12. 12. 1983 after complying with all the requirements of medical and physical fitness. The petitioner was found free from any disease and was adhering to the prescribed standards at the time of his enrolment. The petitioner served the Army for a long period of 19 years and 4 months to the satisfaction of all concerned. He was subjected to various medical check-ups at regular intervals by the Army authorities and was always found fit and was placed in medical category 'aye'. The petitioner after serving for such a long period, started having health problems and was found to be suffering from 'schizophrenia'. He was subjected to a regular Invalidating Medical Board which found the disability of the petitioner to be 20% and he was invalided out from military service on 1. 1. 2003. The request of the petitioner for grant of disability pension was rejected by the PCDA (P) Allahabad vide letter dated 16. 10. 2006 stating that the disability was a 'constitutional disorder' and was not attributable to the military service and the petitioner was paid Army Group insurance Benefit of 37,000/- on account of 20% disability. However, the respondents rejected the claim of the petitioner for grant of disability pension resulting in filing of the present writ petition. Vide letter dated 16. 10. 2006 the respondent initially rejected the claim of the petitioner and the appeal preferred by the petitioner was also rejected. The respondents while declining the disability pension of the petitioner furnished the following medical record of the petitioner and the same reads as under:- ABSTRACT OF RECORDS OF afmsf-16/17 THE INVALIDING MEDICAL BOARD (IMB)/release MEDICAL BOARD (RMB)/re-ASSESSMENT MEDICAL BOARD (RAMB) PROCEEDINGS TO BE HANDED OVER TO THE INDIVIDUAL 1. Service No. 14378232a rank Hav /ofc Name Karan Singh Record Office Army AD Records, Nasik Road Camp was brought before RMB/imb/ramb on (date) 19 Jun 1992 at MH Deviali hospital for disability (ies ) :- (a) SCHIZOPHRENIA 295 (b) (c) 2. Photocopy ( ies ) of specialist's opinions is/are enclosed herewith for information of the individual concerned. Service No. 14378232a rank Hav /ofc Name Karan Singh Record Office Army AD Records, Nasik Road Camp was brought before RMB/imb/ramb on (date) 19 Jun 1992 at MH Deviali hospital for disability (ies ) :- (a) SCHIZOPHRENIA 295 (b) (c) 2. Photocopy ( ies ) of specialist's opinions is/are enclosed herewith for information of the individual concerned. The opinion of the Medical Board is summarised below:- Disabilities Attributable to Service Aggravated by Service Reasons SCHIZOPHRENIA NO NO Constitutional Disorder 3. Assessment : - Disabilities Assessment for each disability Composite assessment Reasons SCHIZOPHRENIA 20% 20% for life This is subject to approval of the competent authority. Sd /-x-x-x-x Sd /-x-x-x-x Sd /-x-x-x-x President member 1 Member 2 CERTIFIED TRUE EXTRACT. ( 2 ) THE learned counsel appearing for the petitioner while relying upon the judgment of this Court in the case of Ex. Sep. Roop Singh vs. Union of India and Ors. W. P. (C) No. 3697/2006 decided on 31. 8. 2006 argued that the cause and aggression of disability was attributable to the military service and the disease of the kind from which the petitioner suffered, is one which is considerably affected by environmental constraints and conditions of service. The disease of Schizophrenia after 19 years of service could be attributed to or in any case be aggravated by the military service. The petitioner was subjected to regular medical check-ups and was never found to be ailing from any disease. He performed his duties to the satisfaction of all concerned and without any health problems. He served at various stations and took the stress and strain of conditions of service, without any adverse effect. In the case of ex. Cfn. Sugna Ram Ranoliya vs. Union of India and Ors. 132 (2006) DLT 544 (DB), the Court held as under:- "22. In order to examine this aspect in some depth we may refer to certain hypothetical illustrations. A person who joined Army after satisfying all the prescribed standards and rigours of physical and medical tests, after having rendered service for number of years in Army, without suffering any illness and then is suddenly taken ill, normally such an illness would be attributable to or aggravated by military service unless in the opinion of the Medical Board there was clinical or investigative evidence to show to the contrary. It is possible that an individual may join the Army in a fit condition and despite normal medical examinations it was not possible to diagnose a disease at the time of his entry into service, however, such a disease surfaces after his joining the army and upon investigations it could safely be stated that the disease was existing even prior to his joining the Army Service. It could also be found and medically demonstrated that the disease was 'constitutional' though it appeared or aggravated after the individual had joined the Army Service. 23. The present case is one of the case out of a bunch of writ petitions which were heard by us. When we were hearing the bunch of these writ petitions, a writ petition bearing W. P. (C) No. 3843/1994 titled as Ex. Hav. Maman Singh vs. Union of India decided on 20. 7. 2006, was also heard. In that case, the petitioner was suffering from 'hemsplegia (left)' and was invalidated from Army service but the Medical Board had conducted investigation upon the patient and it was found that the said disease was existing in his brain even prior to his joining the Army, however, it surfaced at a much subsequent stage. It was also recorded in the Medical Board proceedings that further investigations were necessary and the same was advised to the patient by the Medical Board. In that case, further investigation and treatment was refused by the petitioner which, in fact, could have given the exact time of the onset of the disease and whether it surfaced or aggravated during the Army Services. The said writ petition, on production of Records, was withdrawn by the learned counsel appearing for the petitioner. This would be an example where a person had entered into army service with pre-existing disease and, thus, could not be entitled to the benefits of disability pension on the ground of attribution to military service. 24. Still there could be other cases where opinion of the Medical Board is not supported by a reasoning or comments upon clinical examination and investigations conducted on the concerned person and, in fact, on the face of it they may even appear to be perverse. 24. Still there could be other cases where opinion of the Medical Board is not supported by a reasoning or comments upon clinical examination and investigations conducted on the concerned person and, in fact, on the face of it they may even appear to be perverse. For example, a person, during the course of his service suffers a fracture while on duty and the same as a result of defective surgery results in disability to him, resulting in his invalidation out of service but with a declaration that it was neither attributable to nor aggravated by service. In some cases, onset of a disease may be the most relevant factor to be determined or answered by a Medical Board while in others the emphasis may be on progression of the disease. Such a progression or onset is attributable to or aggravated by military service or not is again a matter on which the medical as well as the administrative authorities are expected to make record-based conclusions or sanctions. But once these two ingredients of regulation 173 of the Pension and Regulations for the Army, 1961 are satisfied and the authorities sanction the pension, the PCDA has hardly any jurisdiction to sit over the finality of these views given by the competent authorities under these provisions. 25. An Officer or the persons other than the Officers, under Regulation 48a and 173 could claim disability pension, which consists of Service element and Disability element. Regulations 48, 173 and 185 of the Pension Regulations provide for the complete scheme and entitlement for grant of such relief, which of course, is subject to change, again as per Rules and particularly in the cases where the Re Survey Medical Board finds that the disability no longer exists or has been reduced. The above principles of law are well-settled and well-explained with hardly any scope for variation. Undue reliance upon opinion of a Medical Board which patently violates the Regulations and Instructions of the Army and gives no historical, diagnostic details of the treatment and the basis for concluding non-attributability or non-aggravation to military service could result in travesty of justice and frustration of the very object of the relevant rules. " ( 3 ) CONSISTENT view of this Court has been that such a disease would be attributable to and/or aggravated by military service. " ( 3 ) CONSISTENT view of this Court has been that such a disease would be attributable to and/or aggravated by military service. In Annexure-III to appendix II, psychosis and psycho-neurosis have been shown to be the diseases affected by stress and strain of the Force. The mental diseases, even otherwise, are affected by environment and can certainly be aggravated in face of the hard service conditions. The consistent view taken by different Benches of this Court clearly shows that the disease of Schizophrenia, keeping in view the long years of service and seen in the backdrop of conditions of service can be attributed to or in any case aggravated by the military service. ( 4 ) IN view of the discussion afore-narrated, we direct the respondents to consider and grant to the petitioner disability pension for 20% disability. However, the arrears would be restricted to the period of 3 years immediately preceding filing of the present writ petition. It will be open to the respondents to subject the petitioner to a Re-Survey Medical Board in accordance with law, if they so desire. The writ petition is accordingly disposed of, while leaving the parties to bear their own costs.