By IANS
Hyderabad : A city court Friday directed the Hyderabad police to register a case of attempt to murder against a legislator and his supporters who attacked doctors of a government-run hospital here as more children died amid a continuing strike of the doctors.
Taking a serious note of Sunday’s incident, the Nampally criminal court asked the police to arrest Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (MIM) legislator Afsar Khan and 28 others for manhandling doctors, including women, of the Niloufer Children’s Hospital.
The court passed the order on a petition by Andhra Pradesh Junior Doctors’ Association (APJDA). The Andhra Pradesh High Court, however, asked the junior doctors of the Niloufer hospital to immediately end their strike and warned them it would get their registrations cancelled if they failed to resume their duties.
The high court, which was hearing a public interest litigation (PIL) on the issue, advised the doctors to sort out the matter through discussions and not resort to strike as it was causing severe inconvenience to people.
The court adjourned the hearing to Dec 11.
The APJDA, however, has decided to continue the strike till the government meets all demands of the doctors. Besides the legislator’s prosecution on charges of an attempt to murder, the striking doctors have demanded his disqualification from the assembly and a legislation to provide protection to doctors at all hospitals.
Since Tuesday 10 more children have died, taking the toll to 28 since the doctor began their strike Sunday.
The senior doctors are finding it difficult to cope with dozens of new cases coming to the largest government-run hospital for children in the state. The hospital authorities, however, claim that the deaths were “normal” and were not due to lack of medical care.
Meanwhile, the state human rights commission also has asked the doctors to call off their strike. The commission, which began the hearing Friday, found fault with the legislator for attacking the doctors.
Afsar Khan, however, did not turn up before the commission.
Commission chairman Subhashini Reddy directed the police to provide adequate protection to the doctors. Usha Rani, Resident Medical Officer (RMO) of Niloufer, gave a detailed account of Sunday’s incident. The hearing will continue Saturday.
The legislator with his supporters had come to the hospital on Sunday to sort out an issue between the doctors and an MIM worker, Junaid Khan, who had admitted his one-year-old daughter with respiratory problems. Angry over the alleged delay in her treatment, Junaid and his relatives had earlier created a ruckus. Junaid was arrested on a complaint from the doctors.
The MIM legislator who represents Karwan constituency in the state capital asked the doctors to withdraw the case against Junaid and allegedly attacked them. He was also involved in the attack on Bangladeshi author Taslima Nasreen here in August.
Afsar Khan was arrested by the police late Sunday but released on bail.