Doctor jailed for rape of patient

MUMBAI, June 23: Additional sessions judge S J Singhal today sentenced a doctor, Mastan Ali Hussain Pathan, who raped a patient, to six months simple imprisonment. The sentence was awarded under the Medical Practitioner8217;s Act as the prosecution did not sufficiently prove the charges of rape in the court. The prosecution case was that on August 5, 1996 the victim came to the doctor8217;s clinic at Jogeshwari complaining of piles.

The doctor treated her and asked her to come the next day for an operation. The victim duly arrived at the clinic at the appointed hour with her mother. The doctor sent the mother on the pretext that the operation could take two-three hours. He later raped the daughter after he had administered her five injections. He later treated the piles complaint and let her go home. She had a severe bout of bleeding and had to go to Cooper hospital for treatment. Subsequently, she lodged a complaint with the police. Dr Sunita Lokhande of Cooper hospital, who attended to the victim deposed that shehad noticed medical negligence on the part of Dr Pathan8217;s treatment but there was no trace of any sexual assault on the rape victim.