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Judgment
Invoking the jurisdiction of this Tribunal under Section 14 of the Armed Forces Tribunal Act, 2007, the applicant has filed this petition and the reliefs claimed in Para 8 read as under :
(a) Set-aside the impugned order dated 10.12.2021 (Annexure A-1) whereby the Respondents have arbitrarily rejected the Applicant's request for deferment of the date of her release from the service until completion of her maternity leave on 11 March 2022 and have rather directed that the Applicant will be forcibly/prematurely released from service on medical ground w.e.f. 23.12.2021.
(b) Direct the Respondents to allow the Applicant to continue in the Air Force service, and not invalid her out on medical ground in consequence of the invalidating medical board proceedings, until she completes her maternity leave on 11 March 2022 followed by 60 days annual leave for the year 2022 and 28 days terminal leave in accordance with the extant rules mentioned in para 4 above; and
(c) Pass any other order(s) or direction(s) as deemed appropriate in the facts and circumstances of this case.
Primarily, it was the contention of the applicant that once she has been sanctioned maternity leave and she is on maternity leave upto 11.03.2022, the respondents cannot prematurely release her on medical grounds with effect from 23.12.2021.
Finding some force in the aforesaid contention, we had requested Shri Anil Gautam, learned counsel for the respondents, on advance notice on 20.12.2021 to seek instructions.
Today, Shri Anil Gautam, on instructions and after discussions with the officials concerned, has fairly stated that in the peculiar facts and circumstances of this case, without treating it as a precedent, he has been instructed to inform us that the respondents will have no objection in case the applicant is permitted to avail of the maternity leave and she shall be released only on 11.03.2022. This is a fair statement made by the counsel for the respondents and Shri I.S. Singh, learned counsel for the applicant, also accepts the same.
Keeping in view the aforesaid, without expressing any opinion on merit and the contentions advanced in this petition, on account of submissions made before us at the time of hearing by the counsel for the respondents, as a special case and without setting any precedent in the matter, we direct that the applicant shall be permitted to be on the roll till 11.03.2022 and she shall be released only after the maternity leave is over on 11.03.2022.
With the aforesaid, OA stands disposed of. Copy of this order be given 'Dasti'.