ORDER :

Tarlok Singh Chauhan, J.

The instant petition has been filed for the grant of following substantive reliefs:

(i) That the respondent council may kindly be directed to produce the letter whereby the candidature of the petitioner for registration with the council was rejected alongwith all the other relevant records.

(ii) That the action of the respondent council in rejecting the candidature of the petitioner for registration may kindly be set aside as illegal and arbitrary.

(iii) That the respondent council may kindly be directed to issue the registration certificate in favour of the petitioner by considering her qualifications as duly acquired from recognized board of school education & university.

2. It is averred by the petitioner that she has acquired +2 in Science from a school in Rajgarh, Sirmour though affiliated to Board of School Education, New Delhi. Thereafter, in the year, 2011, the petitioner registered as student with H. P. University for further studies and in the year, 2016 has qualified B.Sc Medical Lab Technician from NIMS Jaipur, Rajasthan.

3. In the year, 2018 the petitioner got registered as a Medical Lab Technician with the Para Medical Council of Punjab and, thereafter in the year, 2020 petitioner submitted her documents for registration with the H.P. Para Medical Council as a Medical Lab Technician, but the same was refused, thereby, dis-entitling her from participating in the counselling for 161 posts of Medical Lab Technician held on 02.11.2020 in the Department of Health and Family Welfare.

4. The action of the respondents has been assailed primarily on the ground that since the petitioner was duly qualified and possessing +2 certificate from a recognized Board of Higher Secondary Education, New Delhi and B.Sc Medical Lab Technician from a recognised university, she could not have been denied participation in the counselling for 161 posts of Medical Lab Technician.

5. Respondents have contested the petition by filing reply wherein it has been averred that the Himachal Pradesh Para Medical Council was established in the State of Himachal Pradesh as per Act, 2003 (for short 'Act'). The Council has been established to regulate the practice by Para Medical practitioner of the institution and the only purpose of Para Medical Council is to register the recognized Para Medical qualification, a degree, diploma or certificate in any Para Medical qualifications, granted by any university established by law or any other institutions recognized by the State of Himachal Pradesh in this behalf. The Act has been passed to ensure that no Para Medical Institute is run within the territorial limit of State Government without permission which would secure and protect interest of students, who were to study or obtain training from the institute.

6. Thereafter, the provisions of Section 38 of the Act have been quoted and reads as under:-

38.(1) No person shall be registered on the State Register as Para-Registration, medical practitioner unless he possesses a recognized qualification and renewal has not paid such fee, as may be prescribed and different fee many and State be prescribed for different qualifications but it shall not exceed one thousand rupees and the registration shall be valid for a period of three years.

(2) The Council shall cause to be maintained a State Register of para-medical practitioners in such form, as may be prescribed, by regulations.

(3) The Register shall be deemed to be public document within the 1 meaning of Indian Evidence Act, 1872.

(4) Every registered paramedical practitioner registered under sub-section (1) shall renew his registration after every three years on payment of such fee as may be prescribed.

7. It is further averred that eligible candidates are registered as para medical practitioner as required under sub section 1 of Section 38 of the Act and authorized to practice after they are found to have fulfilled the requirements of the Act as well as the different notifications issued by