The Hindu : National : Medicos seek probe against AIIMS Director

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Jul 02, 2006

National

National

Medicos seek probe against AIIMS Director

Staff Reporter

Demand end to `victimisation' of reserved category students, doctors

NEW DELHI: The Medicos Forum For Equal Opportunities at the All-India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) here has urged President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam to direct the Union Government to investigate the role of the AIIMS Director in ``encouraging'' the recent anti-reservation agitation and ``instigating'' the resident doctors to gherao the Dean, Sub-Dean and Registrar on Friday.

Members of the forum have also demanded an end to the "victimisation" of reserved category students and doctors at the Institute.

In a statement issued on Saturday it said its members were ``aghast'' at the gherao of Sub-Dean Sunil Chumber and Registrar V.P. Gupta in their offices by some resident doctors on Friday. Stating that the AIIMS administration made no attempt to provide any security to Dr. Chumber or Dr. Gupta, members of the forum accused the administration of being hand in glove with the resident doctors.

``Even when a senior professor approached the Deputy Director (Administration) regarding this, the issue was dismissed saying that nothing will happen. The Deputy Director was not even prepared to talk to Dr. Chumber on phone,'' said forum member Vikas Bajpai.

``The events at AIIMS for nearly two months now show that the Government has decided that the AIIMS Director P. Venugopal can be allowed to instigate caste agitations and harassment of doctors and students of reserved category at the Institute and get away with it in the name of upholding the autonomy of AIIMS,'' he said.

Dr. Bajpai said the forum wanted the Centre to ensure strict implementation of the reservation for Schedule Castes/Schedule Tribes and Other Backward Classes at the earliest. ``Also, the Government must fulfil its promise of increasing the number of seats in higher education so that the interests of general category students are also safeguarded,'' he added.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

National