Assam: Doctor assaulted in govt hospital, 3 arrested

GUWAHATI: A doctor of a government hospital in Assam’s Barpeta district was assaulted by a gang of miscreants in the hospital building on Thursday morning.


The victim, Dr Bablu Das, is a senior medical officer with the state health department and is currently posted at the Barpeta Civil Hospital.

“I was on duty in the USG room when the miscreants came to me enquiring about Dr Jakir, another doctor of our hospital. I told them to enquire in the room next but they wanted me to show where Dr Jakir is. They assaulted me and also dragged me outside the hospital building,” said Das.

Three of the accused — Waheb Ali, Jahangir Alam and Monirul Islam — have been arrested following an FIR at Kalgachia police station, police said. All of them will be presented before a local court in Barpeta on Friday, said a senior police officer.

However, Das said two other accused are still on the run.

“Monirul’s wife was pregnant and he hurriedly rushed to meet Dr Jakir for medical consultation. Monirul was not happy at the response of Dr Bablu because he wanted the latter to pinpoint where Dr Jakir was at that moment and he, along with some people known to him, started assaulting the on-duty doctor,” said an investigating police officer.

All three accused have been booked under The Assam Medicare Service Persons and Medicare Service Institutions (Prevention of Violence and Damage to Property) Act on charges of indulging in violence against medicare service persons, detering a public servant from discharging his duty and criminal intimidation and various other related sections of the IPC.

“Stringent action must be taken but this is another reminder for the government that police security is must, at least in district level hospitals,” said president of state branch of IMA Satyajit Borah.

Assam Medical Service Association general secretary Makhan Saikia said, “We condemn the Kalgachia assault. The government must review the security loopholes in crowded hospitals like the Barpeta Civil Hospital.”

The last major incident of doctor assault occurred in June 2021 when a group of locals thrashed Seuj Kumar Senapati in a Covid Care Centre (CCC) at Udali in central Assam’s Hojai district. Nearly 30 people were arrested in connection with the attack carried out by the relatives of a Covid patient who died at the CCC. The incident had sent shockwaves across the country.

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