My Lord, they shrunk our heights and chest!

AHMEDABAD: Vanitaben Memekia, a constable aspirant in the Lok Rakshak Dal (LRD) stood 155 cm tall when she participated in the 2014 police recruitment drive meeting the minimum height eligibility for the job.
As her name did not figure in the merit list then, she again participated in the recruitment drive held in February 2019. This time during the physical standard test (PST), her height was recorded at 154 cm. Due to this, her candidature was rejected citing she does qualify the PST!
Memekia is not the only police job aspirant. Gujarat police department has allegedly shrunk height and in some cases even chests of many candidates, officially.
Out of such rejected candidates, 16 have knocked on Gujarat high court’s door alleging erroneous measurement of their vital stats that has jeopardized chances of their dream job.
One candidate, Praveensinh Gohil from Bhavnagar district, has alleged that his chest size was reduced due to which he could not meet the minimum criteria of chest expansion too.
Ironically here, all these 16 candidates had cleared the PST conducted by the Lok Rakshak Bharti Board twice – in 2014-15 and 2016-17. Their height and chest size were measured and recorded as meeting minimum requirements.
All three women candidates were measured at 155 cm and above; all 13 male candidates were measured at 165 cm and above and declared as successful in PST by the Board. The candidates also met minimum standard of non-expanded chest size at 79 cm and expanded chest at 84 cm.
All 16 candidates first moved the HC in March as soon as they were declared disqualified in PST after they cleared the Physical Efficiency Test which includes running.
In four different petitions, advocates of these candidates questioned how all the candidates shrunk their height and chests within four years’ period after clearing PST not once but twice in the past held by the same recruiting agency.
Asserting that the measurement conducted during the recent recruitment drive was not proper, the candidates prayed the HC to direct the government to declare them successful in the test and appoint them as LRDs. The court had sought the government’s reply on the issue.
HC seeks government reply by June 11
However, the recruitment process went ahead, and the petitioners learnt that the police department was going to issue appointment letters to the successful candidates.
They rushed to the HC again on Wednesday requesting the court to stay the recruitment process or to keep the posts vacant for them so that they could be inducted after the court decides on their cases.
The HC again issued notice to the state government seeking the reply by June 11. Justice Biren Vaishnav made it clear that all LRD appointments would be subject to these petitions. The government has been ordered to clarify this in each of the appointment orders it issues now.