Don’t challenge court order cancelling doctors’ transfers, PMK tells government

Appealing against it will further complicate rather than resolve the issue: Ramadoss

03/03/2020, STAFF REPORTER,CHENNAI

S. Ramadoss

PMK founder S. Ramadoss on Monday urged the State government not to appeal against a Madras High Court order cancelling the transfer orders issued to 135 government doctors who went on strike last October over a range of demands, including a pay raise.

In a statement, Dr. Ramadoss noted that the Madras High Court had cancelled the transfer orders only after making it clear that the doctors in question, who had been seeking the reinstatement of 50% reservation in postgraduate courses for government doctors in Tamil Nadu and higher wages, among other demands, had no right to protest whatsoever.

“The 135 protesting doctors were transferred to far-away places and were given 17B notifications. The doctors approached the Madras High Court, which made a ruling cancelling the transfer orders, observed that the Tamil Nadu government did not handle the issue properly and found merit in the demands raised by the doctors,” Dr. Ramadoss said.

Referring to reports that the State government was planning to appeal against the ruling, he said such a move will further complicate the issue rather than resolve it.

“A government that cares about the welfare of the people should not think of winning in a situation but should focus on ensuring that such a situation doesn’t arise in the future. The court has cancelled the transfer orders after stating that the government doctors don’t have the right to protest. By accepting the Madras High Court’s order, the government can ensure that government doctors don’t resort to protests in future. This will benefit all,” he said.