The associate professor of Hassan Institute of Medical Sciences, who was suspended on charges of harassing a house surgeon, has been reinstated. H.C. Lokesh, associate professor in the Department of General Medicine, joined duty recently.
He was suspended for allegedly misbehaving with a house surgeon while on duty in the hospital on January 12. He allegedly misbehaved with her in presence of other students and later kissed her forcefully in the lift. The girl complained to M.R. Suresh, Head of the department, who forwarded it to B.C. Ravi Kumar, director of the institute.
Naveen Raj Singh, secretary of the Medical Education Department, suspended the accused, pending inquiry.
When The Hindu contacted Mr. Ravi Kumar on Tuesday, he said Mr. Lokesh had returned to duty about 10 days ago, as the inquiry did not find him guilty. “The inquiry was conducted by Additional Deputy Commissioner of Hassan. As he was not found guilty, the department reinstated him,” he said.
When Additional DC Kavita Rajaram was contacted, she said the allegation was not proved against him. “I was asked to conduct the probe. The complainant did not appear with the evidence to prove the charges. I submitted my report that the charges were not proved,” she said.
