Doctor assault triggers protests, political storm; Sena corporator, 3 aides arrested

The Maharashtra State Nurses Association (MSNA) said nurses across the state would begin a three-day black-ribbon protest from July 10 and warned that it would intensify the agitation after July 13 if no concrete action was taken. The Maharashtra Senior Resident Doctors’ Association (MSRDA) and the BMC MARD also condemned the incident, sought Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis’s intervention and demanded a zero-tolerance policy against violence in hospitals.

In separate memoranda to the chief minister, the doctors’ and nurses’ organisations described the alleged assault as an attack on the dignity of healthcare workers and the functioning of public hospitals. They demanded immediate arrests, strict action under the Maharashtra Medicare Act and the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, stronger hospital security, and protection for doctors and nurses performing their duties.

Dr Manisha Shinde, president of the Maharashtra State Nurses Association, said repeated assaults reflected the failure to enforce existing laws. “People have no fear of law and order and think they can get away easily after assaulting doctors, nurses or any other medical staff deployed to treat them. There has to be strict action against such people so that no one dares to repeat such acts… We want the Chief Minister to take this matter very seriously. Doctors and nurses are already treating an overwhelming number of patients despite being under-staffed and overworked,” she said.

Central MARD gave the authorities 72 hours to identify and arrest those responsible, warning that failure to do so would lead to an indefinite statewide agitation.

“The safety of doctors and healthcare workers is essential for ensuring uninterrupted and quality healthcare services to the public. We urge the government to treat this matter with utmost seriousness and implement strict measures to prevent such incidents in the future,” the association said.

Three associates of Shiv Sena corporator Ramesh Mhatre were arrested early Wednesday in connection with the assault. Hours later, Mhatre surrendered before the Thane police and was arrested, becoming the fourth person to be held in the case. Police said he was taken for a medical examination and will be produced before a local court, where they are expected to seek his custody. Another woman named in the FIR remains absconding. The three arrested associates have been identified as Ramesh Pawar, Pramod Nikam and Akshay Karande.

According to the police, the assault took place on Monday night after doctors at KDMC’s Shastri Nagar Hospital advised the family of a pregnant woman to shift her to another hospital because all Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) beds were occupied and the newborn might require specialised care. Hospital staff alleged that an argument over the referral escalated into a physical assault on doctors and nurses, triggering a strike by hospital employees.

The incident also triggered a political fallout. Maharashtra Public Health Minister Prakash Abitkar condemned the assault and said disagreements could not justify violence.

“Disagreements happen in public life. In that case, an appellate authority and a complaint authority are available. We will take necessary action when issues are brought to our attention. But resorting to physical assault is not right,” Abitkar said.

Shiv Sena MP Dr Shrikant Eknath Shinde distanced the party from the incident and posted on X, “As a doctor myself, I know that patient service is not merely a job but a service to humanity. In extremely adverse and stressful conditions, doctors, nurses, and other health workers labour day and night for the public’s service.”

In the Assembly, Shiv Sena (UBT) MLA Aaditya Thackeray demanded action against the corporator and sought a statement from the Chief Minister on the issue. He urged the Speaker to take cognisance of the incident and dismiss the councillor from his post, arguing that attacks on doctors would jeopardise patient care if left unchecked.

Before surrendering before the police, Mhatre issued his first public response, expressing regret over the altercation but denying allegations that he assaulted a woman doctor. “I regret the physical altercation that took place but I state again that I did not raise my hand against the female doctor. You are seeing the incident through a particular camera angle of the CCTV,” he said.

“She was on the phone and not listening to our grievances, so I tapped her hand. We follow Balasaheb’s teachings; we have never raised a hand against women, nor will we ever do so in the future,” Mhatre claimed.