The Bihar capital was once again on the edge today with angry crowds taking to the streets over the kidnapping of a well-known doctor at the Patna Medical College (PMCH), the latest in a series of abductions, running parallel to fake police encounters. And true to the script, Chief Minister Rabri Devi said she had ordered the state authorities to secure the release of the doctor immediately.Meanwhile, reports said two patients died due to lack of emergency services as all government hospitals and medical colleges shut down today in protest against the kidnapping of Dr Bharat Singh, 45, orthopaedician and professor at PCMH, on Wednesday night. Eyewitnesses said Dr Singh was abducted in front of a newspaper office as he was returning home in his car after taking part in a wedding ceremony. Angry crowds, who were lathicharged and teargassed, shouted slogans accusing the Rabri Devi administration of being a ‘‘kidnapper government’’, a direct and a trifle unfair reference to another recent incident when a kidnapped doctor was released mysteriously within hours of RJD chief Laloo Prasad Yadav giving the assurance that the administration would secure his release soon.A delegation of different medical bodies went to meet RJD chief Laloo Prasad Yadav who announced that the doctor would be released in 24 hours.‘‘Today it is a spontaneous strike. All the medical colleges are closed, and tomorrow if he is not released within 24 hours, all private clinics and nursing homes will be shut,’’ warned Dr P.N. Pal, president of the Bihar State Health Services and an IMA member. ‘‘We are doctors. We can’t take to the streets, this is the only option open to us,’’ Dr Pal said, defending himself over the death of two patients due to closure of emergency. He said a skeletal system would be setup for patients in a serious condition tomorrow.The state NDA unit has also announced a bandh on February 8 over the kidnapping and the latest encounter killing of a jawan.At Dr. Singh’s house, his wife, Renu Singh, said he could be saved only if pressure was applied on the government. ‘‘I would even pray for the abductors, if they set my husband free, ’’ she wept as her school-going children watched.Patna remained paralysed with lawyers, druggists and chemists already on strike. Patna civil courts remained shut today as lawyers went on strike over the killing of lawyer Jitender Singh who was gunned down. ‘‘The maximum number of kidnappings has been of doctors and lawyers. When pressure is applied on the government it reacts. An assurance is given that the person will be freed and he is. What are we to deduct from that?,’’ said Sailesh Singh, general secretary of the District Bar Association (DBA).Chemists and druggists have also been on an indefinite strike over the kidnapping of Dilip Kumar Barniwal in Lakhisarai district of Bihar. The Patna-based chemist was kidnapped along with his brother-in-law, Prabhakar Kumar, and driver Narendra as he was returning from his own wedding. According to the IMA, two doctors are still in the clutches of their kidnappers, while the Bihar Chemists and Druggists Association said that in the past three months, 12 of their members had been kidnapped for ransom.
