HYDERABAD, March 18: The Hyderabad circuit bench of the Sindh High Court on Tuesday issued pre-admission notices to secretary health, deputy secretary health and medical superintendent of Nawabshah Medical College Hospital (NMCH) over a petition, challenging cancellation of a candidate’s admission to post-graduation programme on charges of sexual harassment.

Dr. Mouzamuddin Bhatti, a postgraduate student, filed the petition through Jhamatmal Jethanand, stating that he had applied for a postgraduate degree course M.D (general medicine) on Nov 8, 2004 and was allowed to join it.

He said that there were no complaints against him so far when a news report accused him of subjecting four staff nurses to sexual assault and the same day MS of Nawabshah Medical College Hospital banned his entry into college premises without any authority and prior notice.

He said that on July 18, 2007 deputy medical superintendent of NMCH called him to record statement about the allegations.

He appeared before the team and sought any document detailing complaints against him and the report of previous inquiry but the request was denied. The team did not even allow him to cross-examine the complainant, he said.

He said that he received another notice, asking him to appear before EDO of health. He informed him that two inquiries had already been conducted and requested him to give him the enquiry reports but he asked him to just record statement.

He said that the NMCH principal who did not conduct any inquiry against him nor participated in the three previous inquiries but all of a sudden he served him with an order, terminating his post-graduate training.

His counsel argued that the principal neither conducted any enquiry nor heard his side of the story before passing the order. The respondents had no authority to conduct any inquiry against him, he stressed.

He prayed the court to declare the order dated July 18, 2007 as without lawful authority and permanent injunctions should be issued, restraining the respondents from acting upon July 18 and Sept 17 orders.