Doctors of Regional Hospital, Kullu, along with private medical practitioners and healthcare staff, held a protest march and submitted a memorandum to the Additional District Magistrate (ADM) and Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) here today. They demanded strict action against those responsible for the mob attack on the hospital premises on June 26 and 29.
The protest was organised by the Himachal Medical Officers Association (HMOA), Kullu Branch, in coordination with the Indian Medical Association (IMA). Over 200 healthcare workers, including doctors, nurses, lab technicians, pharmacists and support staff, participated in the peaceful march to the district administration office.
Addressing the media, Kullu District Doctors Association President Dr Rajender Kohli detailed the harrowing experience when an estimated crowd of 2,000 to 2,500 individuals unlawfully stormed the Regional Hospital. The mob was allegedly incited through social media appeals following a maternal death at the hospital.
“They barged through the gates and entered the hospital premises. They sat in the garden area where patients and attendants rest and began shouting slogans. We were called murderers and butchers. Our nurses were threatened and they demanded that the doctors and nurses concerned be brought before them,” Dr Kohli said.
“What was the meaning of bringing them before 2,000 people? They wanted mob lynching,” he added, emphasising that the situation could have turned catastrophic had the healthcare workers been physically handed over to the agitated crowd.
The memorandum submitted to the administration includes demands for immediate registration of an FIR against the social media handles and individuals who incited the mob, cyber forensic investigation, permanent police security at the hospital and protection of doctors from arbitrary administrative actions driven by mob pressure.
Dr Kalyan Thakur highlighted the presence of private practitioners and all healthcare categories in the protest. “A mob of 3,000 people came to our hospital and disrupted work. We don’t know who allowed them and how it was permitted. The Supreme Court guidelines were not followed,” he said, adding that healthcare providers are living in fear.
Meanwhile, social media was flooded with messages criticising the doctors’ protest, with some members of the public claiming that the demand was only for action against the concerned doctor and nurses and that no physical harm was caused to anyone. It was also alleged that there had been previous FIRs against the doctor concerned and that many aggrieved persons had raised concerns about the doctor’s behaviour and treatment.
The district administration has assured the doctors that the matter will be taken seriously and forwarded to the authorities concerned. The HMOA has also sought intervention from the chief minister and chief secretary, urging immediate action to restore institutional order and protect patient lives.
The doctors have warned that failure to act swiftly could lead to a breakdown of health services across the region due to deep seated fear among medical staff.
