High Court quashes suspension order of former ABVP chief

The Madras High Court on Thursday quashed an order by the Tamil Nadu Government placing former ABVP President Dr Subbiah Shanmugam under suspension for “violating the service rules” by meeting activists of the outfit in jail.

Justice D Krishna Kumar, while hearing the petition filed by Shanmugam challenging his suspension, asked the government to complete the disciplinary proceedings against the oncologist for 12 weeks.

Dr Shanmugam, Head of Surgical Oncology at the Government Royapettah Hospital in Chennai, was placed under suspension in February after he met activists of ABVP who were held for picketing Chief Minister M K Stalin’s residence.

The Directorate of Medical Education (DME) had placed Dr Shanmugam under suspension following complaints that he was involved in political party activities in contradiction with the Tamil Nadu government servants' conduct rules.

Besides visiting ABVP general secretary Nidhi Tripathi at the prison, Shanmugam also accompanied a delegation of ABVP leaders to Raj Bhavan on Wednesday to complain against the government over the arrest of 32 activists, official sources said.

However, Governor R N Ravi, the sources said, avoided Shanmugam and allowed only others who were part of the delegation to meet him and present a memorandum.

Dr Shanmugam was arrested a fortnight ago by the Chennai Police in a two-year-old case in which he was accused of urinating outside the apartment of an elderly lady in Chennai over an argument on parking space. However, he was granted bail by the Madras High Court.

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