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New Delhi: Health Minister Anbumani Ramadoss on Thursday refused to resign after the Supreme Court snubbed him when it reinstated P. Venugopal as director of the prestigious All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in the wake of a bitter turf battle between the two.
The landmark ruling of the apex court, which termed as "malafide and unconstitutional" the central government law fixing the retirement age of the AIIMS director at 65, led to a call for Ramadoss's ouster by the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and AIIMS resident doctors who support Venugopal.
However, an unflustered Ramadoss told reporters: "There is no question of resignation because it was passed by the government and parliament. This is not a setback for us."
Judiciary thanked
"There is no question of misleading parliament. We will take a decision after reading the judgement."
Though Venugopal did not interact with media after the verdict, he thanked the judiciary in a message through the junior doctors and resumed his job at the institute, one of the largest referral hospitals in Asia, without waiting for a formal communication from the health ministry.
"Our director is happy and he has expressed his thanks to the Supreme Court," Kaushal Mishra, a junior doctor, said from Venugopal's residence.
Soon after the apex court verdict, doctors and students of the premier institute supporting the eminent cardiologist broke into celebrations, distributing sweets and flowers as they gathered at his residence.
Many said they would ring in early Diwali festivities at the hospital.
Justices Tarun Chatterjee and H.S. Bedi of the apex court said it was evident that the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, and the Post Graduate Institute for Medical Education and Research, Chandigarh (Amendment) Act, 2007, which limited the tenure of the directors of the two institutes to a maximum of five years or till they reached the retirement age of 65, was enacted with the sole purpose of targeting Venugopal.
Ramadoss and Venugopal have been at loggerheads for the last few years.
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