The doctors in Himachal Pradesh Thursday announced a mass casual leave on Friday and threatened of an indefinite strike from Saturday if the government failed to immediately reinstate a senior resident doctor, whose services were terminated for allegedly getting into a physical altercation with a patient at Shimla’s Indira Gandhi Medical College (IGMC).
After the Himachal Medical Officers’ Association (HMOA) announced that doctors across the state would proceed on leave Friday, the Resident Doctors’ Association (RDA) of the IGMC too threatened to go on strike from Saturday if their demand to revoke the termination order of Dr Raghav Narula (31) is not met.
The state government Wednesday terminated the services of Narula after an internal probe held him guilty of “misconduct”, “misbehaviour” and “acts unbecoming of a public servant’. A report submitted by a committee formed to investigate the incident that took place on Monday found both the patient — Arjun Singh (34) — and Narula — “were responsible for the incident, which amounted to misconduct, misbehaviour, acts unbecoming of a public servant, and violation of the Resident Doctor Policy-2025,” as per an order issued by the director of medical education and research. The services of Narula, posted as senior resident in the department of pulmonary medicine at IGMC were “terminated under the provisions of Clause 9 of the Resident Doctor Policy-2025 with immediate effect”.
The RDA, in a statement, said that it held a gate meeting with the backing of the Shimla Association of Medical and Dental College Teachers (SAMDCOT). Following the meeting, the RDA demanded immediate revocation of Narula’s termination order, and registration of a case for criminal intimidation, conspiracy and unlawful assembly against a person named Naresh Dasta, who, it claimed, directly threatened the senior resident.
The HMOA said that they would meet Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu on Friday, and if their demand is still not met, they would be forced to go on a strike from 9:30 am on Saturday.
The doctors’ bodies said that barring emergency services, all regular services, including elective operation theatres and OPDs, will be closed during the proposed strike period.
HMOA general secretary Dr Vikas Thakur said, “Arjun Singh has criminal cases pending against him. We want the government to probe this aspect too. We are also demanding the installation of CCTV cameras at IGMC and all other government hospitals”.
The HMOA said that intimidation and harassment by mob at the IGMC premises on Monday, jeopardised the safety and working environment of the healthcare professionals and disrupted the regular functioning of the hospital. Alleging that government property was damaged by the mob, the RDA demanded legal action against the “perpetrators” and a review of the “security lapse”.
Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu, meanwhile, told mediapersons that the government had reduced the burden on the senior resident doctors by reducing their shift timings, yet such an incident occurred.
“Earlier, senior resident doctors used to work 48-hour shifts, but we reduced their duty hours to 12 and doubled their stipend from Rs 65,000 to Rs 1.30 lakh. The disciplinary committee and IGMC administration submitted their report to me based on which action was taken,” he said, adding no matter what the situation is, “a doctor attacking a patient is unacceptable”.
Any issues with doctors will be resolved through dialogue in a democratic manner,he said, adding that Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) will be soon implemented for hospitals, including guidelines on the number of attendants permitted with patients and measures to ensure the safety of doctors.
Shimla SP Sanjeev Gandgi, meanwhile said that an FIR was registered on Monday based on a complaint filed by the patient’s family.
An objection by the patient to being addressed as “tu” by the doctor led to the altercation. Naula punched Arjun Singh in the face and chest multiple times. The patient too tried to kick the doctor. A video of the altercation went viral on social media. While the patient alleged that the dispute started over the doctor’s choice of words, Narula said that it was Singh who instigated the fight by using “abusive language” against him and his family.
The incident triggered a protest at the hospital on Monday, with Singh’s relatives and other patients demanding the doctor’s arrest. The situation was pacified only after police intervention.
The Federation of Resident Doctors’ Associations (FORDA), a pan-India body, has submitted a representation to Chief Minister Sukhu, seeking a transparent, time-bound, and impartial inquiry into the incident. The rights and dignity of both the patient and the doctor must be safeguarded during the inquiry period, ensuring that neither is prejudged based solely on the partial video clips or public perception, the association said.
The doctor was terminated under Clause 9 of Resident Doctor Policy, 2025. (File Photo) 
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