Punjab CM accepts resignation of BFUHS Vice Chancellor, Director of Medical Education to take charge

Chandigarh: Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann has accepted the resignation of Dr Raj Bahadur, the vice-chancellor of Baba Farid University of Health Sciences who was allegedly forced to lie on a dirty mattress at a hospital by the state's health minister during an inspection.

The state government has given the charge of the university VC to the director, of medical education, as of now, said official sources.

Medical Dialogues team had earlier reported that a video clip of the incident that circulated on social media, showed Jouramajra placing a hand on the veteran surgeon's shoulder as he pointed toward the "damaged and dirty condition" of the mattress inside the hospital's skin department.

The minister had allegedly asked VC, Dr Raj Bahadur to lie on a dirty mattress and also misspoken with him. Condemning the act, IMA Punjab stated, " It is not only humiliation for the respected Vice Chancellor Dr Raj Bahadur, but entire Medical Fraternity across India has been insulted." Bahadur, a specialist in spinal surgery and joint replacement, is a former director-principal of Government Medical College and Hospital in Chandigarh and has also been the head of the orthopaedic department at PGIMER, Chandigarh. The minister, meanwhile, drew flak from various quarters, including the Indian Medical Association.

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The CM after accepting the resignation forwarded it to the Punjab governor, they said. Dr Raj Bahadur had tendered his resignation after he felt ''humiliated'' at the hands of Health Minister Chetan Singh Jouramajra.

After the incident, Dr Bahadur had conveyed to the Punjab chief minister the ''humiliation'' and requested that he be relieved from service as the work environment was not conducive. The incident had triggered an outrage and various doctors' bodies, including the Indian Medical Association, flayed the health minister over his behaviour and demanded his dismissal from the state Cabinet.

In an attempt to stop Dr Raj Bahadur from resigning the position, CM Mann asked him to resume his duties and forget the matter. He also urged him twice to reconsider his decision to resign from the post and join hands with Mann to create a better healthcare sector for the citizens of the state. 

Rebuffing the health minister Jouramajra's action, he said that no need to conduct a surprise inspection in the hospital and to behave with the government officials in the future. 

Mann took the side of Dr Bahadur stating that he was not responsible for the dirty mattress and the incident should have been handled in a better way.

In an interview with Hindustan Times, Dr Bahadur said, "The minister (Jouramajra) was on the campus for the routine inspection. When he raised the issue of dirty beds in the dermatology ward, I admitted some shortcomings. I repeatedly told him that I was not responsible for the purchase that it has to be done by the medical superintendent and I can only sanction the budget. But he wanted me to lie on the bed, maybe with a motive to publicly humiliate me. If the minister would have asked me to tender a resignation in plain words, I would have done so. Otherwise, too, my term was going to expire next year."

Also Read:AAP Govt defends Punjab minister action of humiliating BFUHS Vice Chancellor