JASWANT SARPAL Vs. STATE OF PUNJAB AND OTHERS

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This petition has been filed by the petitioner stating it to be in the nature of public interest. The petitioner prays for directions being issued to the State of Punjab through Director Health, Department of Health and Family Welfare, Chandigarh-respondent No.1 or any other independent agency to conduct an enquiry into the racket going on in Civil Hospital, Amritsar. It is alleged that one Rakesh Sharma an Opth. Officer is posing and impersonating himself to be a doctor and has been performing the duties of a doctor, besides, has been indulging in various illegal activities such as selling medicines, blood to a private medical store running in the name of Bhandari Medical Store. It is further prayed for taking action against him and also against the erring officers working at Civil Hospital, Amritsar.

(2.) The petitioner submits that the present petition is being filed in the nature of public interest as larger public interest is involved as public servants are playing with the fundamental rights of the people specially health of the poor public coming for treatment at Civil Hospital, Amritsar. It is submitted that the petitioner has no personal interest in this petition and the petition is according to him is according to the Maintainability of the Public Interest Litigation Rules, 2010 ('Rules'-for short).

(3.) The petitioner sought information under the Right to Information Act vide application (Annexure R-1) to know whether there was any person by the name of Dr. Rakesh Sharma working at Civil Hospital, Amritsar and performing various surgeries in the hospital as per reports being published on various occasions in the newspapers particularly in newspapers, 'Dainik Bhaskar' and 'Amritsar Savera'. The petitioner received information from the Civil Medical Officer, Civil Hospital, Amritsar vide letter dated 21.4.2016 (Annexure P-2) informing him that there was no doctor by the name of Rakesh Sharma working at Civil Hospital, Amritsar.