Sexual harassment case: Delhi Health Min urges L-G to take strict against Asst Prof

New Delhi: Delhi's Health Minister, Saurabh Bharadwaj, on Wednesday wrote to Lieutenant Governor (L-G) V.K. Saxena, urging him to take strict action against Assistant Professor accused of sexually assaulting MBBS students at BSA college, Rohini.

The letter also highlights the Chief Secretary's (CS) lack of compassion and apathy towards the victims.

Minister Saurabh Bharadwaj emphasised the safety and security of the female students in the medical college, questioning why the Secretary (Health) didn't report a sexual harassment incident, and why the CS is defending him.

On Monday, the Health Minister directed the Chief Secretary (CS) to take strict action against the Professor accused of sexually assaulting MBBS students at BSA College, Rohini.

Bharadwaj had also directed immediate action against the Principal and Head of Department (HoD) for their reprehensible act of pressuring students to withdraw their complaint.

However, on Wednesday, the Minister expressed his disappointment for inaction in the matter saying, ‘shocked to see the CS is trying to defend the culprits by lame excuses.’

“CS is justifying the Health Secretary for not disclosing this incident of sexual assault to the Minister, despite clear instructions by the Health Minister to the Secretary (Health) to report such incidents promptly,” said Bhardawaj.

“Victims had to finally approach police in an individual capacity when the Vigilance Department and Health Department failed to take timely action. The Internal Complaints Committee was dragging the matter and did not submit its report in 1.5 months,” Bharadwaj said in his letter to LG.

The Minister's letter condemns the CS for shamelessly defending the Health Secretary, Vigilance, and ICC in his ATR, despite their clear complicity in the matter.

On Tuesday, days after female MBBS students from Delhi's Baba Saheb Ambedkar Medical College accused an Assistant Professor of Pharmacology, Salim Sheikh, of sexual harassment during a viva examination, the Directorate of Vigilance urged the Health & Family Welfare Department to propose disciplinary action against the accused.

Taking cognisance of media reports, the Vigilance Department highlighted the need for action in a letter addressed to the Secretary of the Health & Family Welfare Department.

According to the FIR registered on February 22, an MBBS student from the 2021 batch alleged that on January 31, during a practical examination in the pharmacology department, she was subjected to inappropriate and irrelevant questions by the Assistant Professor during her viva. The questions made her feel 'uncomfortable'.

In her complaint, the student described how Sheikh positioned her chair unusually close to him, deviating from the usual setup where students sit across from the teacher.