The Allahabad High Court has stayed the suspension of Kanpurโs Chief Medical Officer (CMO) Dr. Haridutt Nemi, observing that the state governmentโs action prima facie lacked procedural justification under applicable service rules.
The interim relief was granted by Justice Manish Mathur of the Lucknow bench, who was hearing Dr. Nemiโs plea challenging his suspension dated June 19. The suspension had followed a reported standoff between Dr. Nemi and Kanpur District Magistrate Jitendra Pratap Singh.
Advocate L.P. Mishra, representing the petitioner, contended that no formal inquiry was conducted before issuing the suspension order, which he argued was a violation of the Uttar Pradesh Government Servants (Discipline and Appeal) Rules, 1999. Mishra further submitted that even on the face of it, the allegations did not warrant a major penalty such as suspension.
Agreeing with the initial arguments, the court noted, โPrima-facie, submissions advanced by the petitionerโs counsel have force and require consideration.โ The bench has directed the state government to submit its counter affidavit within four weeks.
The case brings to focus concerns over procedural fairness in disciplinary actions taken against senior public health officials and signals the courtโs intent to scrutinize executive decisions that may bypass established rules of service conduct.
