'Dismissed over pregnancy for second consecutive year', says nursing college principal in Ctg

The Principal of Chattogram Imperial College of Nursing, Dolly Akter, has accused the college authorities of unjustly terminating her due to her pregnancy. She alleged that she and her eight-month-old baby were evicted from the college hostel in the middle of the night.

The incident reportedly took place at the Apollo Imperial Hospital, located in Chattogram city's Khulshi area. The college is operated by Imperial Hospital Limited.

Dolly Akter claims that she was dismissed from her position as principal with just one day's notice, without any valid reason provided. According to her, the proper procedure—requiring approval from the vice-chancellor of Chattogram Medical University and the recruitment committee for such dismissals—was not followed.

The official notice of her termination, dated 9 October, made no mention of the reason for her dismissal. It simply stated that the decision was made by the hospital's management. The notice was signed by Md. Arifur Rahman, head of the hospital's human resources department.

In a statement, Dolly Akter said, "I was dismissed without reason after being pregnant for the second consecutive year. The Imperial Hospital authorities evicted me from the hostel at midnight and left me in a city hotel."

She explained that last year, during her first pregnancy, she had been granted four months of maternity leave as per institutional rules. This year, after experiencing health issues, she consulted the gynaecologist at Imperial Hospital on September 21. Upon medical examination, she discovered that she was pregnant again.

"From that point on, the college authorities began to harass me in various ways. HR officials said to me, 'You took four months of maternity leave last year, and now you'll be taking leave again this year. So, it's best if you resign and leave,'" Dolly Akter said.

When she refused to resign, the situation escalated. On 9 October, she was summoned to the human resources department and pressured to resign. When she refused again, she was handed a termination letter and told to immediately hand over all college-related documents to the secretary and vacate the hostel.

Despite multiple attempts, Md. Arifur Rahman, the head of HR at Imperial Hospital, declined to comment on the allegations when contacted by the media.