Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], July 8 (ANI): NCP (Sharad Pawar faction) MLA Rohit Pawar on Wednesday strongly condemned the alleged assault on doctors and nurses at Kalyan-Dombivli Municipal Corporation (KDMC) Hospital in Shastrinagar, demanding the immediate arrest of the accused and alleging that the police and the state government were attempting to shield those linked to the ruling dispensation.
After meeting the injured doctors and hospital staff, Pawar warned that if the prime accused, Shiv Sena corporator Ramesh Mhatre, was not arrested by the evening, protests would be launched.
Speaking to ANI, Pawar said, “What they did was absolutely wrong. They should be sent to jail. They assaulted a female doctor and a nurse, and one doctor’s condition is serious. They used abusive language against a doctor. Just because these people are in power, does that mean they can do anything? Action should be taken against them…”
Pawar alleged that the police and the Home Department were working to protect individuals associated with the ruling alliance and questioned the government’s silence over the incident.
He said threatening or assaulting doctors and nurses would not be tolerated under any circumstances and asserted that the government and the police department would be held responsible if any doctor or healthcare worker was harmed in the future.
Doctors at KDMC Shastrinagar Hospital launched a strike today, alleging “complete lawlessness” following the alleged assault by Shiv Sena corporator Ramesh Mhatre.
However, Shiv Sena Corporator Ramesh Mhatre refuted all the claims of the alleged assault on women doctors and nurses at KDMC hospital, saying that the CCTV footage ‘may look that way’ due to the angle. Mhatre asserted that he did not raise a hand on any medical staff during the visit.
Futher, Political leaders across party lines on Wednesday condemned the alleged assault, saying the law must take its course.
Maharashtra Minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule said strict action should be taken in accordance with the law.
Speaking to reporters, Bawankule said, “Whether in the KDMC area or anywhere else in Maharashtra, if a woman is assaulted, and she has lodged a complaint… No party worker should ever assault a woman; such behaviour goes against our Indian cultural values. If an assault does occur, the law exists, and action must be taken in accordance with the law.”
All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) leader Waris Pathan also condemned the incident, alleging that those in power believed they were above the law.
In a self-made video, Pathan said, “This is absolutely reprehensible, and we condemn it in the strongest possible terms. The intoxication of power, arrogance, and hubris has gone to their heads; it has become deeply ingrained in their mindset. Displaying hooliganism and bullying tactics has become a habit for them because they believe they are untouchable, that no one in power can touch them and that they will simply be let off the hook. It is truly appalling that a Shiv Sena corporator, Ramesh Mhatre, took his goons into a hospital and assaulted doctors. He attacked a female doctor and female nurses and even smashed their mobile phones. Who gave them the right to engage in such hooliganism? If there was an issue, they should have filed a police complaint. Is this how you treat doctors and nurses?…”
Meanwhile, the Federation of All India Medical Association (FAIMA) wrote to Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, urging his immediate intervention to ensure the arrest of all those accused in the alleged assault on doctors, nurses and healthcare workers at KDMC Shastrinagar Hospital.
The association also called for a zero-tolerance policy against violence targeting medical professionals.
In its letter, FAIMA strongly condemned the alleged attack, saying repeated assaults on healthcare workers have emerged as one of the gravest challenges facing India’s healthcare system.
“The Federation of All India Medical Association (FAIMA) expresses its strongest condemnation of the brutal assault on doctors, nurses and healthcare workers at KDMC Shastrinagar Hospital, Dombivli,” the association said in the letter. (ANI)
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