Today, December 8, marks the 36th day of protests, being held by MBBS doctors from across the government colleges in Haryana against the state's bond policy. The students state that they would continue to protest until the government clarifies its stand through a gazetted notification.
Meanwhile, the Indian Medical Association (IMA) of Haryana, in support of the agitating students, has decided to file a PIL (Public Interest Litigation) in the Punjab and Haryana High Court opposing the bond policy. A resolution in this regard was published by the association on December 6, notifying that Dr Karan Juneja, President of the Junior Doctors' Network of IMA Haryana, would be in charge of signing the required documents for filing the plea.
"We are constantly following up and completing the legal formalities needed for filing a PIL in the High Court for our students and for better public healthcare and education," Dr Juneja said. He added that the necessary documents were being readied for the purpose and the process would soon be completed. In the meantime, "The protests are active," he stated.
The students at the Kalpana Chawla Government Medical College (KCGMC), Karnal have decided to boycott their upcoming exams, Dr Juneja said. And a Khap panchayat is in discussion with students at the Bhagat Phool Singh (BPS) Government Medical College, Khanpur, said Akash Mehra, a student of Pandit Bhagwat Dayal Sharma Post Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences (PGIMS), Rohtak. "The Khap panchayat is supporting students in Rohtak, and today, it is sitting with the BPS doctors," he elaborated.
The protests will continue till...
"We will continue to protest till a gazetted notification is released by the government," Akash said further. The students had met Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar recently over the bond policy issues. The Chief Minister had orally promised them a few reforms, but the students were not satisfied, claiming that there were still loopholes in the policy which the government needed to explain in an official written document. This is what the students are waiting for.
Akash added that a PIL had been filed in the Punjab and Haryana High court by a female student about two weeks back. But the plea was dismissed because there was only one petitioner. "So, a fresh petition by the IMA is being planned," the student said.
As per documents shared by Dr Karan Juneja, a series of cases against the then active bond policy were filed in the High Court in 2018 and 2019. Then, another plea (by Ananya Agarwal) was filed in 2020, when the present controversial bond policy was introduced. The students had run a funding campaign for this plea.
