JJ hospital row: Dean has no right to restrict student, says TP Lahane

Dr Ajay Chandanwale

After complaints to the Directorate of Medical Education Research (DMER), by students at the JJ Hospital and Grant Medical College, about moral policing by the management, the regulatory body has decided to issue a warning letter to college dean Dr Ajay Chandanwale and dismiss the warden of the girls' hostel for dictating dress codes to female students.

In a series of stories, mid-day has in the past highlighted the plight of the students being subjected to moral policing at the government-run Grant Medical College. After a complaint was filed by the students, DMER formed a committee to investigate into the allegations. In the report filed by the committee, dean Dr Chandanwale, along with the female warden, were found to be violating students' rights.

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"Stern action will be taken against the dean as such acts can't be tolerated. He doesn't have any right to impose unwanted restrictions on the students. Also, we have decided to remove the female warden from her post," said Dr T P Lahane, director of DMER.

Female students at the college were last month asked by the dean not to wear 'short skirts' on the day of the annual function at the college. Two videos of senior teachers moral policing female students in their hostels were also found. "As per the dean's instructions, if anyone was found wearing shorts/short dresses or skirts, Astitva [the annual fest] would be stopped then and there," a teacher was recorded telling the girls who kept raising their voice against the discrimination.

Gender-specific rules

The college authorities also planned on imposing a 10 pm deadline on its female students. The institute decided to make an in-house library for them so that they didn't have to go out of hostel premises for studies. The male students, on the other hand, were allowed to exit hostel premises without any restrictions. Female students were also subjected to moral policing if found hanging out with their male friends. Students also complained of being subjected to harassment and mental trauma after raising the issue.

"We had to go through trauma because we spoke up. We were so scared that our marks would get deducted or they would fail us in the examination," said a female student. The student association of Grant Medical College earlier this month filed a complaint with the DMER and the education minister regarding the harassment that began with the new dean's arrival. "So far, we haven't received any official letter from the DMER regarding our complaint. But if the authority has decided to take action then we are extremely thankful to them," said a member of the Grant Medical Student Association.

Dr Chandanwale remained unavailable for comment.

Also Read: JJ short skirt row: Students say authorities threatening them

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