The Delhi High Court on Wednesday sought the response of Aam Aadmi Party government on a plea challenging the extension of the tenure of Director even after attaining the age of superannuation, of the Institute of Human Behaviour and Allied Sciences (IBHAS) alleging it’s against the settled law and principles.
A two-judge bench headed by the Chief Justice DN Patel & Justice Jyoti Singh issued notice to the Government of NCT of Delhi, Ministry of Health & Family Welfare (Delhi Govt), Satyendra Jain (Health Minister), Dr. VKS Gautam (Officiating Joint Director IHBAS), Dr NG Desai (IHBAS) & Institute of Human Behaviour and Allied Sciences (IHBAS).
The Delhi High Court noted that this is contrary to the rules and requirements for the appointment of Director.
The Court was hearing the petition filed by Tej Bahadur Singh a retired professor from IHBAS challenging extension of service tenure of Director, Institute of Human Behaviour and Allied Sciences Dr. Nimesh G. Desai beyond the age of 65.
“The Institute is an autonomous body registered under the Societies Act 1860, funded jointly by Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India and Government of NCT of Delhi. It is submitted that IHBAS is a prime Hospital and its affairs need to be organised and controlled by the authorised and legally selected and appointed person. The affairs of the Govt. Hospital under the garb of autonomous body, cannot be hood winked and the rules and regulations cannot be thrown to the wind,”
further averred in the petition.
The plea said, “Dr. N.G. Desai Respondent no. 5 who was appointed as a Director in accordance with the recruitment rules, rather it can be said the existing rules, has attained the age of 65 years i.e. the age of superannuation on 18.10.2020, but he is being permitted to control the activities and affairs of the institution even after the said date and is being permitted to work as Director by Respondent no. 3 and 4, with no authority to do so and their action is totally non-est. It is submitted that the existing recruitment rules not prescribe for such extension at all.”
It was submitted that Dr. Desai has been acting in a most vulnerable and illegal manner and causing a serious prejudice to the public at large and the institution Public Hospital IHBAS imparting the most important medical services to the citizens of the country.
The petitioner has submitted,
“That the transparency and fairness are the basic fabric of the democratic system of the Government. The citizens as well as authorities who are empowered to run the institution like the institute of Human Behaviour and Allied Sciences (IHBAS) etc. are duty bound to follow the rules and regulations, procedure of the law as well as precedence. The affairs of the Government body and Government institution are required to be conducted as per the settled position of law that and the individual whims and caprices cannot be permitted to be imposed upon the institution and further to flout basic rules and regulations and common law. In other words, it can be said that every person who is in the helm of the affairs for conducting the business of a Government body, are bound to follow the rules and they cannot be permitted to act in an unreasonable, unfair and arbitrary manner.”
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“The custodian of the property cannot be permitted to usurp the property or to misuse the same for any other purposes than to safeguard the interest of the public at large; Further every person is bound by the rules of the law and violations thereof for causing any favour to any person, by compromising the interest of the public at large and the institution, would be the most vulnerable as well as detrimental for the citizens as well as for the institution,” stated in the plea.
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