IMA splits over reservations

The Indian Medical Association here has split over the reservation issue, reflecting the split among faculty members in All India Institute of Medical Sciences whose doctors and students had been spearheading the agitation against the quota proposed for OBCs in higher education.

A group of doctors in favour of reservation formed the new IMA today calling it the Indian National Medical Association, after a division happened during a general body meeting.

"The split is not caste based but issue based, involving all those who believe that reservations are essential for social security to the weaker sections," said Vikas Vajpai, convenor of the Medicos Front for Equal Opportunity formed in AIIMS recently following a split in the faculty there over quota.

The new IMA said that the provision in the Constitution for reservation had to be carried out. "How can the doctors oppose something which is law of the land," Dr S P Singh, president of the new IMA, said.

The group said that while a lot of noise was being made on the issue of merit, nobody questioned the merit of those who get admissions in medical colleges by paying capitation fee.

The agitation was against the Constitution of India and hence illegal, the new IMA said.

The new IMA also announced that it was planning to organise a "Maha Rally" on June 4, 2006 here which would be joined by doctors from all over the country to show the solidarity on the issue.

Terming resignation of two members of the Knowledge Commission as "shameful", the group demanded scrapping of the commission, saying it was not aware of the reality of the Indian society.

Meanwhile, medical students on a strike in All India Institute of Medical Sciences here against the proposed reservations for OBCs in higher education today rejected the appeal made by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh yesterday to call off their strike and are now looking up to Congress President Sonia Gandhi for help.