CHENNAI: The Madras High Court has recently ordered the health department to return the original certificates of doctors who completed their postgraduate courses in 2018-21. Justice GR Swaminathan passed the orders on a batch of writ petitions filed by Dr S Giridharan and 24 others.
After the petitioners completed the courses in May 2021, they were employed for Covid-19 duty. They worked on contract for about ten months and were relieved thereafter. Later, they were not given any posting.
When they approached the government medical colleges and the Director of Medical Education seeking their original certificates, they refused to release the certificates citing that they had not fulfilled the commitment of serving two full years in government service as part of an undertaking given during admission.
They questioned the rationale behind it saying that they could not fulfil it since they were not given any posting in government healthcare institutions. Justice Swaminathan said: “...It has been held in catena of cases that management cannot retain the certificates of the students.”