On-duty doctor manhandled by police at Etawah Hospital
Etawah: In a serious case of alleged misuse of power, an on-duty doctor at the Emergency Ward of the District Hospital, Etawah, was allegedly abused, harassed, and manhandled by four police personnel who barged into the hospital and forcibly took him away to treat the ailing mother of the Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), despite him attending to emergency patients.
The doctor stated that he requested the police to take another staff member instead, as he could not leave his post due to the rising flow of emergency patients, but the police officers reportedly refused to listen.
In response, SSP Brijesh Kumar Srivastava clarified that he had not instructed anyone to forcibly bring a government doctor, but had only directed to arrange a private doctor.
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The incident triggered a major controversy and provoked a strong reaction from the medical community. Doctors and healthcare staff staged a two-hour protest, temporarily suspending Outpatient Department (OPD) services.
CCTV footage from inside the department shows a police officer asking the doctor to accompany them while he was attending to an emergency patient lying on a bed nearby. When the doctor refused, the four police officers snatched his phone and took him forcefully with them.
As per Free Press Journal media report, the incident took place on Wednesday at around 11 pm when four policemen from Civil Lines police station allegedly entered the emergency ward and asked Dr Rahul Babu and pharmacist Sharad Yadav to accompany them to SSP Brijesh Kumar Srivastava’s residence.
Citing the heavy patient load in the emergency ward, the doctor refused to accompany them. Despite his refusal, the police officers allegedly verbally abused him, forcibly took him out of the hospital, and confiscated his mobile phone. Dr Rahul and the pharmacist were later taken to SSP Chowraha, only to find that a private doctor had already been called to attend to the SSP's mother.
Following this, Dr Rahul filed a complaint agaisnt the police officials for manhandling them and snatching the doctor’s mobile phone.
The incident sparked outrage among healthcare workers, with representatives from the State Employees Union, PMS Association, and Diploma Pharmacist Association gathering at the hospital this morning.
They protested by locking the doctor's chamber and pharmacy room, demanding action against the police personnel. A protest was held in the hospital auditorium, where they insisted on filing an FIR against the police officers involved.
Chief Medical Officer (CMO) Dr Brijendra Kumar Singh intervened, acknowledging that taking a government doctor away from emergency duty without authorisation is unlawful. He stated that if there was an urgent requirement, the police should have contacted the hospital superintendent or him, and arrangements could have been made for another doctor.
Following discussions and assurances of a proper investigation and action, the protesting medical staff resumed OPD services, as per the UNI report.
However, SSP Brajesh Kumar Srivastava denied any knowledge of the incident, stating that private doctors had already reached to attend to his mother before any government medical personnel were brought. He dismissed the allegations as false, claiming no misbehaviour occurred.
