Inder Verma considered as one of the world’s leading authorities on gene therapy and cancer has received administrative leave

Inder Verma considered as one of the world’s leading authorities on gene therapy and cancer has received administrative leave because of his inappropriate conduct. He is a scientist at the prestigious Salk Institute for Biological Studies in California but institute did not provide any reason for suspending Inder Verma.

The Rose Group, a San Diego-based international employment law and consulting firm is hired by the institute to investigate allegations, not yet made public, that were reported to the institute in February. However, Verma is also on the boards of several Indian scientific institutes and has denied the allegations.

Inder Verma

Verma has been placed on administrative leave till the outcome of the investigation. He will not be performing any scientific or administrative roles on behalf of the institute during this period. Consistent with Salk’s policies governing workplace conduct, the institute has undertaken a formal investigation that is being led by an independent outside party,” Dan Lewis, chairman of the Salk Institute for Biological Studies.

This issue comes to notice after four months when he was placed on temporary leaves as editor of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, a prestigious scientific journal. A science magazine was the first who reported the allegations of misconduct against Inder Verma.

Cancer

According to the magazine, three female Salk senior scientists sued the institute for gender discrimination calling it an “old boys club” that had systematically impeded their careers because they were women. Inder Verma told the San Diego Union Tribune that the leave had stemmed from the lawsuits that Salk professors filed against the Institute in July.

He was appointed as foreign fellow by the Indian national Science Academy in 2005 and Verma also said that it is inappropriate for an individual in a position of authority to engage in any intimate relationship with a direct report or to use that position of authority to take advantage of others.