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Assam police arrest 2 for assaulting junior doctor at Hailakandi hospital
The young doctor, who was beaten after the death of a patient, has not returned to work yet. His mother said she is ‘still afraid to send my son to duty’.
Silchar: Two persons including a woman who were accused of assaulting a doctor last week after the death of a patient in Assam’s Hailakandi civil hospital were arrested on Friday morning. The woman is being kept in a room at the Hailakandi police station after she tested positive for Covid-19.
Police officer Pranab Kumar Saikia said Rumpi Malakar and Himangshu Malakar, arrested from their house on Friday morning, were among those who had assaulted Dr Gaurav Bhattacharjee after a Covid patient died within minutes of being admitted on May 27. The patient’s relatives and friends blamed the hospital for the death.
“The patient had severe breathing issues. He died within a few minutes of reaching the hospital. We could not even start the treatment,” said Dr Bhattacharjee. The young doctor said it was his job to declare the patient dead.
“But they started shouting at me and some family members started beating me. I was saved by my colleagues but no immediate action was taken against the culprits by the police. Not only me, but my colleagues are also afraid of going to hospitals because at any moment we can face such assaults,” Dr Bhattacharjee said.
Superintendent of police of Hailakandi Ramandeep Kaur said strict action will be taken against the two accused. She also promised security arrangements at the district’s health care centres will be upgraded.
Asked about the week-long gap between the incident and the arrest, said the police had received a complaint from Dr Bhattacharjee’s mother. “But the problem was that the doctor could not identify the culprits. He was also hesitant to lodge a complaint initially and they came to the police station a day after the incident. Now the accused have been arrested and we are also working on increasing security arrangements inside all the health centres in the district,” she said.
Dr Bhattacharjee’s family, however, is apprehensive about him joining back.
“In this pandemic, doctors and health workers are risking their lives but it seems people do not try to understand this. We are not happy and convinced with the way the administration and police are dealing with the case. After my son was assaulted, we lodged a complaint in the local police station. I requested the police to ensure the security of my son and other doctors when they work in government health centres. But it took seven days to arrest the accused who were living not far from the police station. I’m still afraid to send my son to duty.”
Dr Sudip Chakraborty, superintendent of Hailakandi civil hospital, said they needed better security for staffers. “We want more security arrangements inside our hospital so that doctors and health workers feel safe while working. We are also planning to install CCTV cameras at the Civil Hospital.,” he said.
