Nagpur Mayo Hospital doctor- cop dispute: Doctors' body threatens indefinite strike

Nagpur: A dispute broke out in the casualty department of Indira Gandhi Government Medical College and Hospital (Mayo Hospital) between an on-duty resident doctor and a police constable and his son following a disagreement over the priority given to the treatment of a critically ill patient. Both sides subsequently lodged complaints, alleging assault and threats.

According to reports, the incident took place on November 4 when the doctor attended to a critically ill patient on priority. This allegedly angered the police personnel and his son, who then assaulted the resident doctor while he was on duty. CCTV footage of the incident has also surfaced. 

Following the incident, the doctor approached Tehsil Police Station to lodge a complaint regarding the assault. However, the Maharashtra Association of Resident Doctors (MARD) alleged that he was kept waiting at the police station for nearly six hours before his complaint was addressed. 

The association further claimed that the doctor, despite approaching the police as a complainant, was booked under serious charges, including wrongful confinement and endangering life. A separate case was reportedly registered against the police personnel in connection with the alleged assault.

The association has objected to the handling of the incident and called for an impartial investigation. Its demands include the arrest of the police personnel and his son, along with the suspension of the police personnel involved.

The resident doctors’ association has warned that doctors at Mayo Hospital will launch an indefinite strike if their demands are not met. Maharashtra MARD has also warned of a possible statewide agitation, Nagpur Today reported. 

Police officials, meanwhile, have maintained that cases were registered on the basis of complaints received from both sides. They have denied favouring either party and said the facts of the incident would be established through the investigation.

The police constable lodged a counter-complaint, alleging that the doctors refused to provide medical papers when he sought to take his son elsewhere for treatment, and abused and threatened him.

The constable also alleged that seven to eight doctors confined him and his son in a room behind the Mayo police outpost for nearly one-and-a-half hours, reports TOI. 

The episode has renewed concerns among resident doctors about their safety while handling emergency cases in government hospitals. The allegations and counter-allegations are now at the centre of the police investigation.