In a chilling incident that has sent shockwaves through India’s medical fraternity, a young woman resident doctor at Delhi’s Baba Saheb Ambedkar Medical College and Hospital was brutally attacked by five female attendants of a patient. The assault took place on June 9, inside the hospital premises in Rohini, following the death of a critically ill newborn.
The doctor, reportedly from the obstetrics and gynecology department, was walking from the OPD to Ward No. 12 when she was intercepted by the enraged attendants of a woman named Sonia, whose child had died hours earlier despite being on a ventilator. Eyewitnesses say the assailants pulled her hair, attempted to tear her clothes, and even tried to strangle her using a stethoscope.
She sustained multiple injuries and was treated at the hospital. The Delhi Police confirmed an FIR has been filed, but all accused were released on bail the same day, sparking fury among the medical community.
Medical Associations Observe ‘Black Day’
The Delhi Medical Association (DMA) declared June 11 a “Black Day,” urging doctors across the capital to wear black ribbons in solidarity with the assaulted doctor. The symbolic protest aimed to highlight the growing insecurity among healthcare professionals working in government facilities.
“Doctors across all hospitals will wear black ribbons during their shifts,” said a DMA official. Meanwhile, the Indian Medical Association (IMA) announced it would send a delegation to meet the victim and deliberate on the next steps.
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Despite repeated calls for greater security and stricter legal protections, incidents of violence against doctors continue to rise. The swift bail granted to the accused women added insult to injury for many healthcare workers, who say they operate under constant fear and political pressure.
Maharashtra Doctors Raise National Alarm
Building on the outrage, the Maharashtra Senior Resident Doctors’ Association (MSRDA) sent a strongly worded letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The letter condemned the growing “trend of scapegoating doctors for administrative failures,” citing not just the Delhi assault but also the public suspension of Goa’s Chief Medical Officer (CMO) Dr. Rudresh Kuttikar by State Health Minister Vishwajit Rane.
Though the suspension was later revoked by the Goa Chief Minister, the MSRDA emphasized the long-term damage such political grandstanding causes. “We appeal for national safeguards,” the letter read, demanding grievance redress mechanisms, zero-tolerance policies, and protection against arbitrary suspensions.
Dignity at Risk: A Call for National Safeguards
Dr. Abhijit Helge, President of MSRDA, noted that repeated acts of political intimidation—whether physical assaults like in Delhi or symbolic humiliation like in Goa—were breaking the morale of India’s frontline health workers.
The association called for institutional protocols to prevent public defamation of doctors and urged the Ministry of Health to issue strict guidelines against suspensions without inquiry. “Healthcare workers are the backbone of India’s public systems. They should not be used as props in political spectacles,” Dr. Helge said.
As the medical community braces for further protests and meetings, one message is clear: India’s doctors are no longer willing to suffer in silence.