Viral Video shows patient kin doing situps, apologizing to Neurosurgeon for attack, Minister orders probe

Bhubaneswar: Doctors from Veer Surendra Sai Institute Of Medical Science And Research (VIMSAR) may have to furnish an explanation as the  Health and Family Welfare Minister of Odisha, Naba Kishore Das recently ordered a probe after a patient's relative was caught by the junior doctors and made to do sit-ups and apologise for allegedly assaulting a neurosurgeon.

The apology act by the youth was filmed that went viral on different social platforms soon after. The video showed the youth in torn clothes begging for an apology by holding his ears and later touching feet of the doctor he allegedly assaulted. The video also shows, the medicos hurling abusive language at the youth.

This came after an incident, that took place on October 20, (Sunday) when neurosurgeon, Dr Acharya Suryakanta Pattajoshi was heading towards the OT. Three young men stopped him seeking to accompany them to a private healthcare facility where his ailing father (who was previously treated by Dr Pattjoshi but the youths were unhappy with his treatment) was admitted. However, the medical practitioner expressed his inability to go with them.

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Aggrieved with the response, the trio allegedly got into a heated argument with the doctor and attacked him. On hearing the commotion, junior doctors from VIMSAR and a few people around gathered there caught hold of the attackers and overpowered them to police at the outpost in the hospital campus. In protest, junior doctors and US medical students of VIMSAR gheraoed the police outpost on the premises of the hospital demanding stringent action against the accused.

Two attackers managed to flee while one of them was nabbed by VIMSAR doctors and compelled to do sit-ups and apologise to the doctor. The entire scenario was shooted in a video that spread like a wildfire.

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The video indeed put the members of the medical fraternity as well as general public in a standoff. While doctors defended that the apology was much needed in the current scenarios of increasing violence against doctors, many activists came out calling the doctors to move "dadagiri"

Following this, the State Health Minister has now ordered a probe into the entire matter

Talking to Odisha Post, the minister said, “In a democratic country like India, this is an extremely unfortunate incident. I have already placed an order of inquiry. An additional secretary of our department along with another officer will visit Burla and conduct the inquiry.”

“We cannot simply decide on the basis of a visual. I am waiting for the inquiry report. Our federation system has its set of rules. Let the law take its own course, ” he added.

Meanwhile, 2 FIRs have been registered by both parties, one by the doctor and the other by the trio's kin with the Burla police. On the basis of the complaint, police registered a case under Sections 506 (criminal intimidation), 323 (voluntarily causing hurt), 341 (wrongful restraint) and 34 (acts by several persons in furtherance of common intention) of the IPC.