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EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE
MUMBAI, NOV 29: The Bombay High Court last week directed the New India Assurance Company Limited to take an HIV positive woman on the rolls as a peon, holding that the right to earn a livelihood is a part of Article 21 of the Constitution and ``a person cannot be denied employment only on the ground that the person is HIV positive, but otherwise fit''.
The division bench comprising Justices M B Ghodeswar and S Radhakrishnan passed the orders on a petition filed by the woman, `G', whose husband was working with the insurance company. Her husband died while in employment and the petitioner had applied for employment on compassionate grounds.
The petitioner has three minor children. The company, though, rejected her proposal since on medical examination, she was found to be HIV positive. According to the company's doctor, her HIV positive status made her ``medically unfit''. However, the company sought expert opinion from Dr I S Gilada of the Indian Health Organisation, who had opined that the petitioner wasmedically fit to join the company. He stated that though she carries the Human Immunodeficiency Virus, ``she was asymptomatic and her immunity was intact''.
Counsel for the petitioners, advocate Anand Grover too argued before the court that according to the judgement of the Bombay High Court in the case of MX of Bombay v/s Ms ZY, the court had ruled that, ``an HIV positive person cannot be denied employment, only on the grounds that he is HIV positive''.
The bench then admitted the petition and in an interim order directed the company to take the woman on compassionate employment, within a week. The company has been directed to take the woman as peon on a temporary basis initially for a period of three months.
The company has been given the liberty to take a further medical opinion about the woman at the J J Hospital, and parties have been allowed to move the court if necessary.
Copyright © 1999 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.
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