Excelsior Correspondent
SRINAGAR, Aug 7: The Jammu and Kashmir High Court today issued notice to the Government to seek its objections within four weeks in sexual assault case on a nurse allegedly by Director Health Services Kashmir Dr. Saleem-ur-Rehman in connivance with his associates.
Justice Ali Mohammad Magrey of the High Court after hearing advocate Syed Faisal Qadri for the petitioner nurse issued notice to Chief Secretary of the State, Commissioner Secretary Health and Medical Education Department, Director Health Services Kashmir Dr. Saleem-ur-Rehman, Chief Medical Officer Anantnag Dr. Nazir Shahdad, Block Medical Officer Pahalgam Dr. Arshid Hussain Tak and Assistant Surgeon Seer Anantnag Dr. Ashraf Padder for filing their objection in Opposition to the writ petition.
The petitioner nurse submits in her petition that Dr. Saleem-ur-Rehman, CMO, BMO and the assistant surgeon are involved in acts of sexual harassment against her for last more than six months.
She further submits that CMO and BMO in a drunken state at many occasions arrived at Pahalgam and would try to secure her presence before them on one pretext or the other and many times they would directly approach to her official quarters during night hours and would seek undue favours including sexual harassment and all the time such acts were resisted by her and the said act encouraged them including Director Health.
“This act of humiliation and harassment by the officials forced her to report the matter to the high officials including the concerned Minister”, says the petitioner in her petition.
She further submits that on one occasion she was informed that she is required in the office of Director Health Kashmir in connection with some official work and on the directions she reported to the office of Director on June 5th this year and has been asked to wait in office of Chief Accounts Officer of the Directorate.
“In a few moments the Director Health entered the said Chamber, bolted the entry door of the room from inside and started abusing her physically as well as verbally and in order to save her chastity somehow managed to run from the said place and reached the concerned police station for lodging FIR and complaint about the incident,” the petitioner said.
Instead of investigating the allegations the entire machinery was utilized in order to ‘create an impression that the allegations leveled are false and fabricated’ and within 48 hours “the Director Health as granted clean chit by the concerned police” which clearly makes an impression that the investigation was not conducted in its fairness manner, submitted by the petitioner.
The petitioner prays that a committee, in terms of the Provisions of the sexual harassment of Woman at Work place Act 2013, for the purpose of conducting an enquiry in the complaint, filed by her against the officials, and disciplinary proceedings be initiated against them.
She further prays that enquiry initiated and conducted by the Commissioner Secretary Health in the allegation leveled against these officials be declared illegal.
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