Air Force Corporal faces dismissal for not taking Covid-19 vaccine, moves Gujarat HC

A corporal in the Air Force has moved the Gujarat High Court against a show-cause notice issued to him by his superiors asking why he should not be dismissed for not taking the Covid-19 vaccine. The high court after hearing his grievances issued notice to Air Officer Commanding-in-chief, South Western Air Command, Gandhinagar and directed not to take any "coercive" action against the petitioner.

The division bench of justices A J Desai and AP Thaker issued the notice on Tuesday and sought response from the Air Force authority by July 1. The bench also ordered, "Till then, no coercive action shall be taken against the petitioner, who is at present not willing to take the vaccine." The petitioner Yogendra Kumar, currently posted in Jamnagar, has moved the court through advocates Shree M Kotwal and Aum M Kotwal.

The petition states that Kumar wrote to his commanding officer in February, showing his "unwillingness for vaccination". A show-cause notice was issued to him, asking him "as to why no action should be taken against for his unwillingness to immunisation" in accordance with Air Force regulations.

Kumar responded that the vaccine is "fully approved by administration and has been given Emergency Use Authorisation (EUA). Hence, it should not be considered as the only option in order for prevention against Covid-19." In May, he received another show-cause notice for his dismissal under "Air Force Act, 1950 read with Air Force Rules, 1969 for unwilling to get vaccinated for Covid-19."

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In the special civil application, the petitioner Kumar has argued that since he has the right to receive treatment of his choice, "vaccination can't be forced upon him." "Making vaccines mandatory and forcing upon an individual (petitioner herein) will be contrary to the judgment of the Supreme Court in Common Cause Case, where Supreme Court has held that an individual has right over his/her own body and the right to decide the medical treatment for themselves."

Kumar has cited many reasons behind his "unwillingness", including his belief in Ayurvedic treatment, his "inner consciousness" that doesn't allow him to get jabbed, Adverse Effects Following Immunisation (AEFI), among others. He has said, "I am not in favour of demotivating others for vaccinations and I am also observing that others apparently have no major side effects of vaccines but still I have some hesitations and my inner consciousness does not allow to get vaccinated instead of using ayurvedic methods."

Kumar has cited various RTI replies from the Union government claiming that "vaccination is voluntary" and not mandatory. Therefore, he has said in the petition that "terminating from job due to unwillingness of taking Covid-19 vaccine is completely illegal, unconstitutional and arbitrary."