HC: Reinstate suspended health officer

S Shyam Prasad | NT

Bengaluru: The Karnataka High Court has ordered the reinstatement of a suspended Taluk health officer who had issued a wrong birth certificate but withdrew it later after realizing his mistake.

“The age-old adage is, to err is, ‘human’ meaning thereby, that human frailty is a recognized fact and it is but natural for humans to commit error. Every error ought not to be actionable, unless it is shown that the error is pre-meditated, or for extraneous reasons or consideration or is repetitive. It is not the case that the petitioner had even attempted to cover his alleged conduct. Yet the respondents have deemed it necessary to place him under suspension,” the HC said.

Dr Lakshmikantha SR, the said taluk health officer, Tumakuru, approached the High Court against his suspension. His petition was heard by the Division Bench of Justice G Narendar and Justice Shivashankar Amarannavar.  

Lakshmikanth was discharging duties at the Gover nment Hospital, Tumakuru where he was approached by one Amtur Rafe, seeking a certificate that she had delivered a girl baby in her house at Tumakuru. The officer issued the certificate that the child was born on October 12, 2022. Subsequently, after realizing that the information provided by the woman was false and incorrect the certificate was cancelled by him on October 28, 2022.

The child was born somewhere else and not in Tumakuru. A few months later, on January 30, 2023, Gajendra Kumar Gowda of the Karnataka Rashtra Samithi Party lodged a police complaint against the health officer. Following this the Department of Health and Family Welfare Services kept Lakshmikantha under suspension. The Karnataka S t at e A d m i n i s t r at ive Tribunal (KSAT) did not grant him interim relief on his application forcing him to approach the HC.

The HC in its judgement noted that for three months none of the authorities or the superiors in the department, the competent authority or the disciplinary authority or the municipal authority deemed it necessary to initiate action against him. But as soon as the police complaint was filed, action was taken. The Court also noted the complaint had charges that do not apply in the present case.

“We are puzzled and unable to comprehend as to how provisions of Section 420 (cheating) and 468 (forgery) have been invoked against the petitioner who, admittedly, has issued a certificate and which certificate can be validly issued by a competent authority. The fact that such a certificate can be issued is not denied and it is also not denied that the certificate has been issued by the petitioner who is the Taluk Health Officer in his official capacity.”

Without going into the merits of the allegation, the HC opined that prima facie the suspension of the accused was not right. “In our prima facie opinion the case of the petitioner does not fall within the parameters enumerated under Rule 10 of the KCS (CCA) Rules. The parameters which warrant or justify the suspension are well carved out and the power of suspension cannot be available if it is for reasons other than those enumerated therein. In all probability, the action complained of on the part of the petitioner appears to be sheer inadvertence,” the Court said.