Homoeopathy practitioners and students attacked the office-cum-residence of eminent scientist and founder-Director of CCMB, Dr P M Bhargava, on Monday afternoon. They were protesting against the scientist's statement on Sunday questioning the efficacy of homoeopathy.
The agitated homoeopaths broke open the gate, pulled down the office board and tried to force themselves in through the main door. The timely arrival of the police saved Dr Bhargava from vandalism let loose by hundreds of students of homoeopathy and members of the state Homoeopathy Medical Graduates Association.
The Association took out a rally from the Government Homoeopathy College, Ramanthapur, to CCMB, thinking that he was still working there. They shouted slogans against him and burnt his effigy in front of CCMB. When they realised that Dr Bhargava no longer worked there, the agitators moved to his office-cum-residence nearby at Tarnaka and besieged the place demanding that he come out. They ransacked the premises and were trying to break open the doors when the police arrived on the spot and prevented them from resorting to further vandalism.
Addressing a press conference under the banner of the Federation of Atheist and Rationalist Association (FARA) of Andhra Pradesh, on Sunday, Dr Bhargava said homoeopathy should be derecognised by the government as the medical system was not based on scientific evidence. He also said that the government should not allot funds for a system which did not stand scientific scrutiny.
Reacting to the protest, Dr Bhargava said, "My comments were intended to initiate a healthy debate among practitioners of homoeopathy, doctors and scientists. If the homoeopaths were offended, they too could have addressed the press or provided proof of the efficacy of homoeopathic drugs." "I have never experienced this type of violent reaction to any of my statements in any part of the world. This is not the way issues in science are dealt with," he said.
The Association president, Dr A Yadgiri Reddy, told newsmen that there was no truth in the statements made by Dr Bhargava and FARA president Innaiah against homoeopathy. They should not speak like that at a time when the state government was contemplating the setting up of a homoeopathy wing in every government hospital and the Central government at every railway station.
Dr Bhargava's tirade against homoeopathy, however, does not find many supporters. Dr C L Venkat Rao, former member, Medical Council of India, said homoeopathy could not be dismissed in such a manner. "In curing chronic diseases and preventing outbreaks of epidemics like Japanese Encephalitis, homoeopathic drugs had proved to be effective," Dr Rao said.
Dr T Janardhana Naidu, Commissioner, Department of Indian Medicines and Homoeopathy, rubbished the statement of Dr Bhargava, saying that more and more people are flocking to homoeo hospitals in the state. In such a scenario, the demand that the government withdraw support to this stream of medicine was absurd, he said.