Mrs Venugopal, wife of former director of All India Institute of Medical Science, admitted that Dr P Venugopal was badly hurt by the humiliation flung on him by the union health minister Dr A Ramdoss during the meeting of the governing body meeting of the premier institute of the country.
"Yes, he is hurt and is upset about the removal from the post," she told group of journalists who went to meet Dr Gopal at his residence in the AIIMS complex on Wednesday evening hours after he was told to quit the post.
Dr Gopal chose not to speak to the media despite the fact that he and his wife were driving out in the same car. " Please do not stop us as there is a bereavement in our friendly circles", she said before the journalists decided to move out and let the car being driven out of the house.
Dr Gopal went to attend the board meeting at the Nirmal Bhavan that began around 11 in the morning. After an hour Ramdoss asked him to leave the place as the matter that was to be discussed was related to him and hence his
presence was not desirable. In the meanwhile the word was out that a decision to remove had been taken and it was to be sent to the cabinet for approval as the director of AIIMS is appointed by Cabinet Committee for Appointments.
When he came out of the meeting he was literally helped into the car and looked visibly moved. Even before Dr Venugopal reached his residence doctors of AIIMS and four other unions went on indefinite strike and made arrangements to move the patients to other hospitals.
"I had brought my mother-in-law in crucial condition and she had to be administered glucose but then the doctors went on strike," said a young woman from Rajasthan.
Other patients were also put to great inconvenience but they had no alternative. However the ICUs and the CCUs in the hospital were operative as these patients needed to be kept under obversation.
Dr Binod Patra, president of the Resident Doctors Association, said that they would not move unless Ramadoss is sacked and Dr Venugopal is reinstated as the director of AIIMS.