The Delhi High Court has ruled that a scar left from tattoo removal cannot be used as a basis to disqualify a candidate from joining the Delhi Police.

The decision was made by a Bench of Justice Suresh Kumar Kait and Justice Girish Kathpalia while upholding the Central Administrative Tribunal's (CAT) order in favour of Deepak Yadav, who had been initially rejected due to a faded tattoo on his right forearm noticed during a medical examination.

Yadav, who had applied for a constable position, was declared unfit by the Staff Selection Commission (SSC) due to the tattoo.

However, the Court observed that Yadav was undergoing a tattoo removal procedure at the time of his medical exam, and by the time the matter reached the Court, only a faint scar remained.

"It is pertinent to mention herein, when any candidate has a tattoo on his/her forearm, who is entering in the selection process of any force including Delhi Police and if that tattoo which is objectionable to the petitioners herein then opportunity is always granted to such candidate to get it removed within a time bound manner. Despite, if he or she still does not get it removed, his or her candidature is liable to be rejected," the Court said.

The Court emphasized that such scars can sometimes occur naturally and should not be a reason to disqualify a candidate. "We have physically seen the right forearm of the respondent (Yadav), and from the naked eye, the tattoo is not even visible ... According to us, there is no clear visible tattoo on the forearm of the respondent. However, in place of the tattoo there is visible very dim scar," the Court stated.

The Court also noted that candidates with objectionable tattoos are typically given time to have them removed. Yadav was already in the process of removal when his first medical examination took place in January 2024. Given this context, the Court ruled that Yadav should have been allowed to complete the tattoo removal and reappear before the Review Medical Board.

"The Medical Board was held on 20.01.2024 and subsequently, the Review Medical Board was held on 22.01.2024. Even before the said period, the respondent was undergoing the surgery for tattoo removal and it is because of this reason that the tattoo was found faded on the forearm of the respondent. Therefore, the respondent had no opportunity to atleast appear before the Review Medical Board after getting the procedure complete for tattoo removal done," the Court noted.

Finding that Yadav now has no visible tattoo and meets all other eligibility criteria, the Court directed that he be allowed to join the next training batch within a week, noting that vacancies were still available. "...in our considered opinion, we do not find any error or perversity in the order passed by the learned Tribunal. Therefore, we find no merit in the present petition and, accordingly, the same is dismissed along with pending application. It is also not the case of the petitioners that all the vacancies are already filled up since the basic training of the second batch has been commenced from 01.07.2024. Accordingly, the petitioners are directed to allow the respondent to join the second batch for training within a week from the receipt of this order," the Court ordered.

Cause Title: Staff Selection Commission & Ors. v. Deepak Yadav [W.P.(C) 10084/2024]

Appearance:-

Petitioner: Advocates Apoorv Kurup, Gurjas Narula, Aanchal Dubey

Respondent: Advocates Esha Mazumdar, Setu Niket, Unni Mayas, Ishan Singh, Chetna.

Click here to read/download the Judgment


Justice Suresh Kumar KaitJustice Girish KathpaliaDelhi High Court

Sukriti Mishra