HC rejects doctor's plea against dismissal for overstaying on foreign deputation

Madurai: The Madras High Court bench here Friday observed that government servants such as doctors should not for any reason be sent on deputation overseas when there was already a dearth of such professionals in the country.

Justice R Mahadevan made the observation while rejecting a plea of Dr. D Lilly Manoharan seeking to quash a government order dismissing her from service for overstaying in Kuwait after being sent on deputation. The petitioner, who was suspended a day before his retirement and then dismissed, had sought a direction to the officials concerned to sanction pension and other terminal benefits. The judge said a government servant who is rendering such public service like medicine should not be sent on deputation out of India for any reason.

"It is high time, the government has to take appropriate steps as a matter of policy as they are necessary to ensure that none of the doctors from our country are sent to any other country either on deputation or otherwise, when already there is a dearth of such professionals in our country," he said. The judge questioned the inaction of officials for long time though disciplinary action was initiated against her way back in 1997.

The doctor was permitted to join foreign medical service for a year from September 1992 which was later extended till September 1996. But she did not return and continued there till 2003. In fact, after issuing show-cause notice in 1997, nothing progressed till 2003, when the doctor was allowed to join duty back home. However, she remained absent once again.

During this time, the officials should have acted swiftly with departmental proceedings, but they chose to suspend her a day before she was to retire, the judge said. The inaction on the part of the officials had led to filing of the present petition, he said and directed officials of the health department not to repeat such lapses in future and ensure that steps were taken then and there when delinquency was committed by a government servant.