ORDER

The present writ petition has been filed seeking a direction to the respondent No.1 to 6 to treat the petitioner's two-year compulsory bond period as completed in line with the service rendered during the Covid-19 period and to consequently relieve the petitioner from his bonded service in the 6th respondent hospital and also to direct the 2nd , 4th and 5th respondents to return the petitioner's original certificate and documents collected by the 2nd and 4th respondents while admitting the petitioner to the Post Graduate degree course along with his post Graduate degree certificate within a time frame fixed by this Court.

2.Heard, the learned counsel appearing for the petitioner and the learned Government Advocate appearing for the respondents. Perused the materials on record.

3.(i).The petitioner is a MBBS graduate and a registered Medical Practitioner. Subsequently, he pursued and completed his post-graduation in M.S.Orthopedics from Tirunelveli Medical College and he completed the same in the year May, 2023. At the time of admission to the course, he executed a bond for a sum of Rs. 40 lakhs, undertaking that after completion of the course, he would serve the State for two years and submitted his original certificates with the respondent authorities.

(ii).Within few months of commencing his post graduation course at Tirunelveli Medical College, COVID-19 pandemic had struck and he was inducted into the service for performing COVID-19 duty in the Tirunelveli Medical College Hospital and the duration of COVID-19 duty as served by him commenced from 01.06.2020 to 31.05.2023. Precisely, he served in the COVID-19 duty for 2 years, 11 months and 30 days. He was also provided with a COVID-19 duty certificate for the period of 2 years, 11 months, 30 days as per G.O(MS) No. 371, dated 18-11-2023.

(iii).In the meanwhile, he completed his post-graduation degree in the year May, 2023 and he was directed to join service as Assistant Surgeon, Government Primary Health Centre, Thissenvillai by order, dated 26.11.2023, vide proceedings of the Deputy Director of Health Services, for a period of one year and seven months towards the purpose of satisfying the bond and the petitioner has duly joined duty on the same day. However, this petition came to be filed by the petitioner seeking to direct the respondents 1 to 6 to treat the petitioner's 2 year compulsory bond period as completed, by adjusting with the service rendered by him during the COVID-19 period for a span of 2 years, 11 months and 30 days from 01.06.2020 to 31.05.2023 and consequently relieve him from his bonded service in the 6th respondent hospital and also to direct the respondents 2, 4 and 5 to return his original certificates and documents collected by the 2nd and 4th respondents, while admitting him to the post graduate degree course along with his post-graduate degree certificate.

4.The lis in hand is no more res-integra and this Court has dealt with a couple of cases in W.P.No.26556 of 2022, dated 02.02.2023 and W.P.No.22894 of 2023, dated 08-09-2023, wherein, favourable orders have been passed by this Court to the petitioners therein. For the sake of convenience, the relevant portions of the writ petition in W.P.No.22894 of

2023 is extracted hereunder:

“3.In Dr.Jayakrishnan M.P. and others vs. The State of Tamil Nadu and others in W.P. No.26556 of 2022 dated 02.02.2023. this court has faced the identical question and it answered the same as follows:

"8. It is however contended by the learned counsel for the petitioners that those Government Doctors, who had completed their Post Graduation and did Covid-19 duty were favourably considered by the respondents and the period for which they had actually treated Covid-19 patients were off-set with the two years period of any Government Service. It is therefore contended that the petitioners are treated unequally and that they were studying Super Specialty Courses after completing their Post Graduation. It is contended that when P