PESHAWAR: The doctors, who appeared in interview for the post of assistant professor at Hayatabad Medical Complex (HMC), have alleged that the selection has been made in violation of merit.

According to sources, 11 candidates applied for the post of assistant professor at the depart-ment of medicine, Khyber Girls Medical College/HMC in January this year.

One of the candidates was declared ineligible and 10 were called for interview but only five of them turned up. The interview was held at HMC on February 3.

On February 7, the selection and promotion committee, including12 senior doctors, recommended the appointment of Dr Mohammad Tariq Mehr as assistant professor in Medical B ward of the hospital. Dr Mehr was already been working in the same ward as acting senior registrar.

Dr Iqbal Haider, one of thecandidates, however, alleged that the selection committee violated merit and appointed a junior person on the post.

He approached the Standing Committee on Health of Khyber Palchtunkhwa Assembly on March 19 and pointed out that the appointment was made in violation of merit.

Dr Haider said that he had been working as senior registrar at medicine department of Khyber Teaching Hospital for the last six year while the newlyappointed person had only six months experience as senior registrar. `Furthermore, his month long experience as senior registrar isn`t valid because his posi-tion was not regular but he worked as acting in-charge,` he told the committee.

According to the documents, Dr Haider presented before the committee, he also claimed that a senior registrar was required to work for one year on probation before regularisation.

Dr Haider said that criteria for eligibility to the post of assistant professor were experience as senior registrar, years of post graduation, which he fulfilled but he was denied the post.

He said that the selected doctor had done MBBS in 2011 and was far more junior to him as he completed the same degree in 1995. Similarly, his postgradu-ate experience of 11 years was ignored and preference was given to a doctor, who had just three and a half years work experience, he said.

Dr Haider, who received 48.52 per cent aggregate marks, less than Dr Mehr`s 48.73 per cent in the interview, claimed that he should have been appointed owing to his vast experience.

Interestingly, the aggrieved doctor also sent an application to the HMC chief executive on February 28, seeking details of the interview under Right to Information Act but he was denied, he told the committee.

However, Prof Mumtaz Marwat, head of medicinedepartment at HMC, told Dawn that he had appeared before the standing committee and satisHed it regarding the appointment of the assistant professor.

Prof Marwat, who headed the team of panelists to recommend a person from among the applicants, said that the interview had taken place in line with the government`s rules. He rejected the impression that merit was violated in the appointment of assistant professor.

Another doctor, who wished not be named, said that he was also Kling a case in the court against the administration of HMC for violating merit.