Four months after several woman doctors at KEM Hospital approached the POSH committee with allegations of sexual harassment against Dr Ravindra Deokar, a professor at KEM, the committee has, in its inquiry report dated August 18, 2025, found him guilty. As the committee’s recommendations for disciplinary action are mandated to be implemented within 15 days of the verdict, it marks a decisive turning point in the prominent case against a senior forensic medicine professor.
Confirming the report submission, Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) Commissioner Bhushan Gagrani told The Indian Express, “I have received the report officially, but I am yet to go through it. Right now the report is being assessed by the additional municipal commissioner and I will check it on Monday and after that the next course of action will be taken.”
Sources, however, confirmed the POSH committee has, in its report, directed that Dr Deokar be immediately transferred out of KEM until the complainants complete their academic year. He has also been barred from holding any professorial post that carries supervisory powers, restricted to a non-academic associate professorship for five years, and cannot serve as an examiner for MUHS examinations during this period.
Sources said the Maharashtra University of Health Sciences (MUHS) has also been formally notified of these developments, and the punitive action is to be clearly recorded in his official service record. Dr Deokar was also ordered to vacate service accommodation on campus, with a stern warning that any recurrence of such behaviour in future will trigger strict disciplinary action.
While Dr Deokar did not respond to calls and messages sent by The Indian Express, the complainants termed it a partial relief and called for strict implementation of the report.
“The recommendations from the POSH enquiry report should be implemented strictly and immediately and there should be no attempt to mitigate the same. We hope this will motivate all women suffering sexual harassment in the medical field to raise their voices against their perpetrators. This is a partial relief for all of us but the fight for justice will continue in the court of law,” the complainants said.
KEM Dean Dr Sangeeta Rawat declined to comment on the punitive actions and committee findings, citing confidentiality protocols and ongoing administrative procedures.
The chain of events that brought the matter to light began on March 15. According to the complainants, on March 15, doctors at the forensic medicine department of KEM noticed a young female student who appeared anxious, angry, irritable, and unresponsive to their attempts at communication. Concerned about her condition, her seniors sat with her to understand the cause of her distress. During this interaction, she alleged inappropriate behavior by Dr Deokar (additional professor, forensic medicine) with her within the department.
A few days later, woman doctors gathered in the odontology room of the forensic medicine department and, for the first time, spoke about alleged abuse they had been enduring from Dr Deokar. They filed a complaint under POSH Act.
On April 12, an assistant professor of forensic medicine formally lodged a complaint of sexual harassment against Dr Deokar at Bhoiwada police station, under Sections 74, 75 and 79 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. Five other woman doctors joined in the complaint later.
Dr Deokar was suspended from KEM and the Bhoiwada police launched a search for him as he was allegedly absconding. This is one of the reasons why a sessions and the Bombay High Court rejected his anticipatory bail plea. Sessions Court Judge Dr Gauri Kawdikar in her order, rejecting Dr Deokar’s anticipatory bail, pointed out that six woman doctors had already lodged complaints, with the possibility of more surfacing. Dr Deokar was arrested on May 26 and released the same day on an interim bail issued by the Supreme Court.
Sources said numerous complainants revealed that Dr Deokar would threaten woman doctors with academic consequences, including the possibility of failing them in exams, if they spoke up about his conduct. The threat created a pervasive climate of fear, causing some victims to defer reporting their experiences until after their post-graduation, the sources added.
“The tragedy of being a woman in this system is knowing that even in spaces meant to heal, it’s still a man’s world, and that world is built to silence you,” said another complainant.
Another doctor, also part of the six complainants, added, “We knew that he was fully aware of his actions and the comments that he made. His inappropriate behaviour was not restricted to the staff but also to the students (MBBS and MD students). After we filed the complaint, a few of these students even reached out to us with their own incidents with Dr Deokar.”
-with inputs from Pratip Acharya
KEM Dean Dr Sangeeta Rawat declined to comment on the punitive actions and committee findings, citing confidentiality protocols and ongoing administrative procedures (Express File Photo) 
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