Sexual harassment: Addl prof suspended

Lucknow: An additional professor in the paediatrics department at KGMU was placed under suspension following allegations of sexual harassment levelled by a junior resident. After receiving the complaint, the university administration initiated an inquiry and, on Feb 11, referred the matter to the Internal Committee for Prevention of Sexual Harassment (POSH) for probe.Officials said the committee's preliminary findings found the allegations to be true. The accused faculty member was placed under suspension to ensure that the investigation was not influenced. He was also barred from entering the department and attached to the office of the dean, medicine.
In her complaint, the MD student alleged inappropriate behaviour by the additional professor and accused him of sending unwarranted messages to her mobile phone. She approached the university administration along with her family members to lodge a complaint. On the directions of VC Prof Soniya Nityanand, the committee recorded the complainant's statement and questioned the accused. KGMU spokesperson Prof KK Singh said: "The accused allegedly called the resident doctor to his chamber on the pretext of work, held her hand, and molested her. The complainant later informed a woman faculty member and filed a formal complaint, after which the inquiry was ordered." This was the fourth case of alleged sexual misconduct reported at KGMU recently. In an earlier case, in Sept 2025, a senior doctor in gynaecology and obstetrics was accused of misconduct and later transferred to another department. In Dec, an MD pathology student accused Dr Rameez, a senior doctor, of establishing physical relations on the pretext of marriage, forcing her to undergo an abortion, and pressuring her for religious conversion. He was arrested after several days of search. An intern, Mohammad Adeel, was arrested in Jan following allegations by a nursing student that he sexually exploited her on promise of marriage.