To restart CPS courses or not: Two ministers fight it out

The news about attempts to restart courses offered by the College of Physicians and Surgeons (CPS) in the corridors of power has led to a fight between two senior cabinet ministers – Girish Mahajan and Hasan Mushrif.

To be sure, the decision to de-recognise CPS courses was taken by the then medical education secretary, Ashwini Joshi, after she found several irregularities in its affiliated institutions. On July 14, Mahajan, who was the medical education minister, signed off on a government resolution in this regard.

The department was later given to Mushrif after the Ajit Pawar faction of the Nationalist Congress Party joined the government. Mahajan, a Bharatiya Janata Party leader, is currently the rural development minister.

CPS moved Bombay high court challenging the de-recognition of its courses. Opposing this petition, the registrar of Maharashtra Medical Council (MMC), Sanjay Deshmukh, filed an affidavit in HC.

In a related development on Thursday night, the medical education department transferred Deshmukh out after he allegedly refused to follow instructions from higher-ups to support CPS.

Asked about the sudden transfer, Mushrif said, “His term at MMC was complete. I have given the charge of registrar to an official from my department. There were complaints against Deshmukh, and I had to answer queries about him in the assembly.”

Deshmukh has been sent back to his original department in Maharashtra University of Health Sciences.

Irked by a series of incidents where officers, including Joshi, related to the CPS case were being transferred, Mahajan complained to chief minister Eknath Shinde and deputy chief ministers Devendra Fadnavis and Ajit Pawar eight days ago. Shinde on Friday asked his office to look into the matter.

Mahajan said about eight days ago, he heard that efforts were under way to restart CPS courses. “It is a bogus organisation with money changing hands to give postgraduate degrees. I met the CM and the deputy CMs and complained that there was no reason for a rethink of the decision taken in my tenure. I am told that the CM has asked officials to look into it.”

When asked about the development, Mushrif confirmed that the department was indeed rethinking the decision but was quick to add, “Whatever the court decides is acceptable to us.”

Sources at Mantralaya said the medical education department was even preparing to file an affidavit in HC though Mushrif denied that there was any such move.

MMC has, in its affidavit filed in HC, contended that section 10A of the MMC Act requires permission from the Central government to start a medical college or to start new courses by approved medical colleges and none of the institutions affiliated to CPS have taken the required permission, sources said. MMC has justified the action against CPS, claiming that none of the institutions affiliated to it are teaching hospitals and therefore cannot be allowed to run the courses, the sources added.

Girish Maindarkar, president, CPS, said, “We had met Mushrif with a plea to reconsider the earlier order. We had gone to him with all college and institution owners who ran CPS courses. There is a shortage of doctors in the state. Why allow the students to suffer by closing down the CPS. Besides, the state has no right to close 10 of our courses as they have no jurisdiction. We had also requested the medical education department to tell us about the lacunae in the courses and they are yet to get back on that. They can take action against a particular medical college but what is the necessity of closing down all courses. The matter is in court. Let us see what happens.’’

CPS was established in 1912 as an examination body and derives power to grant degrees under the Indian Medical Degrees Act, 1916.