Karnataka Resident Doctors demand legal cell to fight assault cases, write to CM BS Yediyurappa

The association further pointed out that the vicious cycle of these incidents followed by symbolic protests and FIR registration and legal hassles have been going on for decades, adding that it believes that the formation of a "State-Level Legal Cell" can be a one-time solution for the long-standing problem of assault on healthcare.

In the letter addressed to Yediyurappa, the association stated that the contribution of the resident doctors in this pandemic is enormous as they served by keeping their life, family, career, and learning at risk. The doctors across Karnataka are putting their best to bring out the best health care facility possible.

However, there has been an unprecedented rise in the number of physical assaults on healthcare workers. Moreover, the unnoticed, unregistered assaults and also incidents of verbal abuse threats, hampering the duties to be discharged by the duty doctors can amount to hundreds.

"When we look back to these incidents, since the past few years the greatest hurdles in penalizing the culprit is that the resident doctors or health care workers do not have a legal back up to fight the cases. Fighting these cases at an individual level is the greatest pain a doctor can go through. When the incidents happen when we are still compliant with the medical ethics and standard treatment protocols when we are working for the people and for the government, it is also duly the responsibility of the government to ensure such incidents don't happen and make sure culprits are legally punished. All these years there has not been a legal system established at the government level to fight this injustice that happened to healthcare workers," the letter reads.

The association suggested that the formation of a state-level legal cell and its presence at the district level too is the need of the hour. " Any exploitation of our right to safety is the exploitation of our basic fundamental right. We are also urging the Government of Karnataka to take all necessary measures to put a halt to such untoward incidents by forming a state-level legal cell. We are very hopeful that the same would be formed within the period of around the next 3 weeks. The increasing number of cases of assault on doctors is a serious threat to our basic fundamental 'right to safety'. Any threat to our right to safety and right to discharge our duties will not be tolerated," wrote Dr Dayanand Sagar, president, KARD.