Set up Permanent Medical Board for transparency in Recruitment: HC orders State, slams KPSC

Bengaluru: While considering a plea by a candidate who had been rejected for the post of Motor Vehicle Inspector on the basis of a wrong medical board report, the Karnataka High Court bench has recently directed the State Government for constituting a permanent medical board for ensuring transparency in recruitment to government jobs made through Karnataka Public Service Commission (KPSC).

Taking note of the fact that the wrong report had been given by the medical board set up by KPSC, the bench observed that genuine candidates should not be deprived and justice should be done in all fairness. This would require not giving a free hand to the KPSC to choose its own medical board and experts during recruitment, the bench comprising of Justice B. Veerappa and Justice S. Rachaiah was quoted noting by PTI.

Opining that the permanent medical board was required for ensuring that genuine candidates would not be deprived of opportunities, the bench observed that otherwise the officers of KPSC would refer either Bowring hospital or Minto hospital according to the whims and fancies based on the candidature.

Such observations came from the bench while it was considering a plea by Shivananje Gowda B N, who had applied for the post of Motor Vehicle Inspector. However, a medical certificate was issued to the petitioner by Dr G Nandakumar of Bowring and Lady Curzon Hospital falsely mentioning that a candidate was colour-blind and half a centimetre shorter than the required height. Based on the certificate, issued on July 16, 2021, the candidature of the petitioner was rejected by the KPSC.