Panghat v. Balt. Veterans Affairs Med. Ctr.
| Decision Date | 27 December 2019 |
| Docket Number | Civil Action No. ELH-19-994 |
| Parties | LIJO PANGHAT, M.D. Plaintiff v. BALTIMORE VETERANS AFFAIRS MEDICAL CENTER, et al. Defendants. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — District of Maryland |
Lijo Panghat, M.D., the self-represented plaintiff, filed suit against his former employers, the University of Maryland, Baltimore ("UM") and the "Baltimore Veterans Affairs Health Center" (the "VA"), alleging, inter alia, that he was unlawfully terminated from a Post-Doctoral fellowship position in UM's Department of Surgery. ECF 5 (the "Complaint").1 The 44-page Complaint appears to lodge claims for denial of due process (ECF 5, ¶¶19-70, 108); breach of contract (id. ¶¶ 105-07); intentional infliction of emotional distress ("IIED") (id. ¶¶ 114, 129-33); wrongful discharge (id. ¶¶ 116, 122); and misrepresentation. Id. ¶¶ 134-42.2 Plaintiff also appears to assert a retaliation claim under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended, 42 U.S.C. §§ 2000e et seq. ("Title VII"). ECF 5, ¶¶ 5, 115. Thirteen exhibits are appended to the Complaint. ECF 5-2 to ECF 5-14.
UM has moved to dismiss the Complaint, pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(b)(1) and Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(b)(6). ECF 16. The motion is supported by a memorandum of law (ECF 16-1) (collectively, the "UM Motion"), and eighteen exhibits. ECF 16-3 to ECF 16-20. The VA also moved to dismiss under Rules 12(b)(1) and 12(b)(6) or, in the alternative, for summary judgment under Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(a) (ECF 17), supported by a memorandum. ECF 17-1 (collectively, the "VA Motion"). Plaintiff opposes both motions. ECF 25; ECF 26. And, defendants have replied. ECF 27; ECF 36.
After the motions became ripe, plaintiff submitted a "Motion To Submit New Evidence To Further Support The Case of Dr. Panghat" (ECF 37) ("Motion to Supplement"), along with an affidavit and two exhibits. ECF 37-1 to ECF 37-3. UM opposes the Motion to Supplement (ECF 38), and plaintiff has replied. ECF 39; ECF 39-1 to ECF 39-3. In addition, plaintiff filed a motion for entry of default against the VA. ECF 40 ("Motion for Entry of Default"). The VA opposes the Motion for Entry of Default. ECF 41.
No hearing is necessary to resolve the motions. See Local Rule 105.6. For the reasons that follow, I shall grant the UM Motion (ECF 16) and VA Motion (ECF 17), and I shall deny the Motion to Supplement (ECF 37) as well as the Motion for Entry of Default (ECF 40).
Dr. Panghat is an Indian national working in the United States on a J-1 visa. ECF 5, ¶ 1. In September 2015, he received an offer from UM to serve as a Post-Doctoral Fellow at UM'sSchool of Medicine, in the Department of Surgery, Division of Vascular Surgery. Id. His offer was memorialized in a letter dated September 10, 2015, signed by Stephen T. Barlett, M.D., the Chairman of UM's Surgery Department. ECF 5-4 ("Offer Letter").4 Plaintiff's faculty mentor was Dr. Brajesh Lal, Professor of Surgery. Id.
According to the terms of the Offer Letter, the position was "expected to be for one year," with the possibility of "renewals up to a maximum of 5 years in the School." Id. Further, it provided that Panghat's appointment as a "Visiting Post-Doctoral Fellow will end when you resign or after notice of termination per the UMSOM [University of Maryland School of Medicine] Scholar Fellow Policy, whichever is sooner." Id. Under the terms of the UMSOM Scholar Fellow Policy, "[a] Scholar Fellow appointment may be terminated by the Unit Head (Dean, Chair, Director), with or without cause, before expiration for disciplinary or non-disciplinary reasons[.]" ECF 5-6 ("Fellow Policy"). The Fellow Policy further provided that fellows "are to be provided with a minimum of 60 calendar days' written notice when an appointment is to be terminated." Id. However, it also explained that "[e]xceptions to providing the requisite 60 day notice may be sought through the [School of Medicine] Dean's Office in extraordinary circumstances[.]" Id.
As part of his fellowship, Dr. Panghat also worked part-time at the VA's Health Center in Baltimore. ECF 5, ¶¶ 2, 12. According to plaintiff, he was a "WOC (Without Compensation) VA employee." Id. ¶ 3.
Plaintiff alleges that while at the VA, he was sexually harassed by a senior VA surgeon, Dr. Preeti Rebecca John, with whom he worked at the direction of his UM supervisor, Dr. Lal.ECF 5, ¶¶ 3, 15. Plaintiff "complained to his supervisors" that he was being sexually harassed by Dr. John. Id. ¶ 3. But, "instead of resolving this problem, his supervisors suddenly became very hostile against him." Id.; see id. ¶ 16. In addition, the harassment from Dr. John allegedly "increased manifold." Id. ¶ 16.
On January 19, 2016, plaintiff met with Dr. Lal and Dr. Rajabrata Sarkar, another senior physician in the Surgery Department. Id. ¶ 17. During the meeting, Dr. Sakar allegedly "made an absolutely wild false allegation against [plaintiff] in the presence of Dr. Lal[.]" Id. Specifically, Dr. Sakar accused plaintiff of "stalking another employee[.]" Id. Dr. Lal then told plaintiff that he was "terminated forthwith on the grounds of this so-called sexual harassment of a colleague." Id. ¶18. When plaintiff tried to respond, "Dr. Lal refused to give him an opportunity to speak[.]" Id. Rather, UM "summarily" terminated him. Id.
Plaintiff received a letter from Dr. Barlett, dated February 4, 2016. ECF 5-11 ("Termination Letter"). It said, in part, id.:
This letter is to inform you that in accordance with the policies applicable to the employment of Post-Doctoral Fellows, your position with the University of Maryland, Baltimore is being terminated for cause. Specifically, as part of a sexual harassment complaint and investigation against you, you were directed to cease all interactions with the Complainant. Thereafter, you continued to make contact with her, and you continued to engage in conduct similar to which you had been warned to cease. Your failure to follow the direct order to refrain from contacting the Complainant constitutes serious misconduct and could be interpreted as an attempt to harass or intimidate her in violation of university policy.
Further, the Termination Letter advised that, "[d]ue to the extraordinary circumstances of the situation, grounds exist for immediate termination." Id. However, Dr. Bartlett stated: "Notwithstanding this fact, UMB is electing to give you 60 days' notice from the date you spoke with Dr. Rajabrata Sarkar such that your discharge will be effective March 18, 2016." Id. The Termination Letter warned plaintiff that UM would no longer sponsor his J-1 visa, meaning heneeded to either depart the United States no later than thirty days from March 18, 2016, or adjust his visa status. Id.
Following plaintiff's termination, he lodged a complaint with UM's Title IX Director. ECF 5, ¶ 5; see id. ¶ 23. Plaintiff alleges that UM responded by "deliberately blocking his transfer to Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions (JHMI) to take up a new job of a post-doctoral fellow[.]" Id. ¶ 5. Further, he claims that UM "knowingly and viciously acted in a manner due to which the status of [plaintiff's] valid Visa was irrevocably jeopardized." Id.; see id. ¶ 88(b). According to plaintiff, he has not worked as a physician since January 2016. Id. ¶ 6.
On June 12, 2017, Dr. Panghat, without counsel, filed a defamation lawsuit against UM in the Circuit Court for Baltimore City. See Panghat v. Univ. of Md., Balt., 24-C-17-003267 ("Defamation Action"); see also ECF 16-3, ¶ 8 ("Defamation Complaint"). Plaintiff alleged that the Termination Letter was defamatory and should not have been sent to the University's Office of International Services. ECF 16-3, ¶ 14. The Defamation Complaint contained a lengthy recitation of factual allegations, as well as numerous exhibits. And, it alleged that UM "had committed a large number of other serious offenses" against him, including "wrongful termination, breach of contract and retaliation." Id. ¶ 6.
In the Defamation Complaint, plaintiff acknowledged that he was confining his lawsuit to defamation but planned to file future lawsuits. He said: Id. ¶ 7.
UM moved to dismiss the Defamation Action, asserting, inter alia, that it was immune from suit due to plaintiff's failure to file a notice of his claim with the State Treasurer's Office, as required by the Maryland Tort Claims Act ("MTCA"), Md. Code , §§ 12-101 et. seq., of the State Government Article ("S.G."). ECF 16-11 ("UM Motion to Dismiss Defamation Complaint"). The circuit court granted UM's motion on the ground that plaintiff had failed to submit a timely notice of claim to the State Treasurer, as required by the MTCA, nor had he shown good cause for the failure to do so. ECF 16-14 ("Circuit Court Order").5 Plaintiff appealed to the Maryland Court of Special Appeals, which affirmed the circuit court's order in an unpublished per curiam opinion on March 5, 2019. ECF 16-17 ("Court of Special Appeals Opinion").
Dr. Panghat initiated the instant action in the Circuit Court for Baltimore City on January 18, 2019. ECF 1. On April 2, 2019, the United States timely removed the case to this Court on behalf of the VA. Id.; see also ECF 10. Thereafter, UM filed a motion to dismiss (ECF 16), and the VA moved to dismiss or, in the alternative, for summary judgment. ECF 17. Plaintiff opposes the motions. ECF 25; ECF 26. And, defendants replied. ECF 27; ECF 36.
On November 7, 2019, plaintiff filed the Motion to Supplement. ECF 37. There, plaintiff avers that he has obtained "crucial new evidence that is vital and extremely pertinent to this Case[.]" Id. at 1. He...
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