By Neena Bhandari, IANS
Sydney : Suspended Indian doctor Muhammad Asif Ali, a former flatmate and colleague of now-freed terror suspect Muhammad Haneef, remains a “person of interest” to investigators, according to the Australian Federal Police.
Ali was interrogated by the AFP over his relationship with Haneef, but was released after questioning earlier this month.
AFP Commissioner Mick Keelty told newspersons: “(Dr. Ali) is a person of interest to us. He has remained so since day one and he will continue to be a person of interest until we satisfy ourselves that we know everything that we should know about Dr. Ali.”
Asif Ali was released following questioning in connection with the British bombing attempts. Police sources described him as a man who had simply made an “unfortunate acquaintance” and Commissioner Keelty had said there was nothing to suggest Ali had committed a crime and he was free to return into the community.
Asif Ali, 26, was suspended Tuesday with pay from the Gold Coast Hospital in Queensland. He is said to have lied about his employment history. It is alleged that Ali’s resume included up to 12 months of hospital work in India that he never performed.
His lawyer, Neil Lawler, Wednesday agreed that, “There’s a few discrepancies which Dr. Ali acknowledges. His resume in particular… he’d extended some dates for employment… and that was inaccurate and he acknowledges that.”
The lawyer also admitted rubber stamps carrying the name and details of different specialists at a medical college in Bangalore were found in his client’s Gold Coast unit, but had never been used, according to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
Immigration Minister Kevin Andrews called on his most vociferous critic in the Haneef saga, Queensland Premier Peter Beattie, to release all documentation relating to Asif Ali.
The minister told the media, “People have a right to know what procedures Dr Ali was carrying out, what these problems so far as his qualifications were concerned, and for everything to be put on the public record.”
Asif Ali’s suspension has been referred to the Medical Board of Queensland and the Crime and Misconduct Commission.
However, it is reported that Asif Ali’s medical qualifications are not in doubt and he is still described as being a competent doctor. Ali graduated from India’s Mysore University in 2001 and had directly applied to the Gold Coast Hospital after meeting a doctor from the hospital in Britain in 2006.
It is highly unlikely that Ali will lose his job. After checking his certificates from previous employers, qualifications and work history in Britain, the Medical Board of Queensland has not found them to be in dispute.
Ali now has 21 days to respond to a “show cause” letter from the Medical Board.
His lawyer told the Australian Associated Press (AAP), “He intends to show cause and retain his medical registration and hopefully continue to practice medicine here in Australia.”
The latest case has led to Queensland Opposition Leader Jeff Seeney calling on the state government to undertake an audit of all overseas-trained doctors.
Earlier, Indian surgeon Jayant Patel, dubbed “Dr. Death”, had been linked to the deaths of 17 patients at Bundaberg Base Hospital in the state’s southeast. Patel has fled to the US.
The Haneef case is once again stirring the debate about 457 work visas and the vetting of skilled migrant applications, especially in the northern state of Queensland which relies heavily on foreign doctors to meet shortages.
In recent years, the influx of foreign skilled migrants has eased checks on applicants as the department’s resources are overwhelmed with increasing numbers.
Last year, the number of 457 visas approved jumped by more than 40 percent to just under 40,000.
There are estimated to be 5,000 overseas trained doctors working under supervision and under the 457 temporary visa scheme. In the past 12 months, 1,200 doctors have been given visas under the scheme and Queensland Health is understood to be its biggest user.
Haneef was arrested July 2 and released from detention July 28 after terror charges against him were dropped.