The board of governors of Indira Gandhi Institute of Medical Sciences will meet on February 21 to decide the fate of a lady associate professor of the college of nursing.

The lady concerned was removed from her post after she levelled sexual harassment charges against former IGIMS director Arun Kumar. The matter is sub-judice now.

Sources said the Centre recently asked IGIMS director N R Biswas for details of the lady associate professor's case after which he sent a reply a fortnight ago.

'Yes, I had received a letter from the Union ministry of health and family welfare, asking me to do fact-finding in the case and then get back to the Centre. I have sent a letter regarding this to the Centre around 15 days ago. However, whether or not the lady associate professor would be reinstated, is a decision to be taken by the institute's body of governors' meeting on February 21,' IGIMS director N R Biswas told The Telegraph over phone on Friday.

Sources said after the last body of governors' meeting in August last year, a two-member committee comprising former PMCH principal Amar Kant Jha Amar and NMCH principal Shiv Kumari Prasad was formed to look into the case and submit their findings. The two-member team submitted their report around a month and a half ago.

'The committee was asked to dig out everything, right from the associate professor's allegations of sexual harassment to her removal from the post. However, sexual harassment charges had been levelled against one of the two members on the team in the past. The board should not have made him a part of the probe committee,' said an IGIMS doctor on condition of anonymity.

The doctor said the health department did not give importance to the lady associate professor's case. This can be gauged from the fact that even after getting two-three letters from the zero hour committee of the state assembly,which recommended that the associate professor be reinstated, the health department did not take any action.

Sources said the health department cannot take direct action in this matter, as IGIMS is an autonomous body on the lines of IGIMS-Delhi. But, as the state health minister happens to be the chairman of the body of governors, he can interfere in this and any other issue related to IGIMS.

A well-placed source said at the upcoming board of governors' meeting, the hospital administration was planning to tell the lady associate professor she would be reinstated if she takes back the case against the former IGIMS director.