After chest pain complaints, Sena corporator held for doctors’ assault sent to hospital’s prison ward

Hospital staff said the incident left several employees shaken, with some breaking down in tears. (Special arrangement photo, Image enhanced using AI)

A day after his arrest for allegedly assaulting doctors, nurses and healthcare staff at Kalyan-Dombivli Municipal Corporation’s (KDMC) Shastrinagar Hospital, Shiv Sena corporator Ramesh Mhatre was admitted to the prison ward of the Thane District Civil Hospital on Wednesday night after complaining of chest pain. On Thursday, doctors, nurses and the rest of the medical staff of the hospital staged protests, demanding strict action against him.

Hospital authorities said Mhatre was admitted to the prison ward and kept under observation after his blood pressure fluctuated. Doctors treating him said he suffers from hypertension, breathlessness and vomiting. “He has only one kidney and has multiple health ailments. His blood pressure has been shooting up and, in such cases, there is a risk of stroke. That is why he has been kept under observation. He is likely to be discharged on Friday morning,” a senior doctor at the hospital said.

As Mhatre underwent treatment, around 150 doctors, nurses, attendants and other employees of Thane District Civil Hospital gathered outside the hospital between 2 pm and 3 pm wearing black ribbons and raised slogans such as, “attacks on doctors must stop” and “provide security to healthcare workers”. The protesters demanded Mhatre’s immediate disqualification as a corporator, arguing that a public representative accused of assaulting healthcare workers had no moral right to continue in office.

“As doctors, we do not discriminate between patients and provide treatment to everyone. But outside the hospital bed, an accused remains an accused. We strongly condemn the assault while continuing to fulfil our professional duty of treating him,” a senior doctor participating in the protest said.

“He assaulted women doctors, nurses, attendants as well as a male doctor, and the CCTV footage clearly records the incident. On what grounds is he denying the allegations? Would any public representative tolerate such a physical assault by their own constituents? This incident underlines the urgent need for robust security measures to ensure a safe working environment for healthcare workers,” another doctor added.

The protest also demanded stringent legal action against all those involved in the assault and enhanced security arrangements at government hospitals.

Meanwhile, protests against the assault spread across Maharashtra, with resident doctors and nurses observing black ribbon demonstrations in government and semi-government medical colleges and hospitals while ensuring that patient care remained uninterrupted.

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In a statement, the Central Maharashtra Association of Resident Doctors (Central MARD) said the statewide protest witnessed participation from resident doctors, medical teachers, interns and other healthcare professionals. The association welcomed the Vishnu Nagar police’s arrest of the main accused, but said the incident had exposed serious concerns over the safety and security of healthcare workers.

Calling the alleged assault on a woman doctor “completely unacceptable”, Central MARD urged the Maharashtra government to strengthen security across healthcare institutions and ensure strict action against those responsible for violence against medical professionals. It said it was confident that Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis would take cognisance of the incident and ensure effective measures to prevent similar attacks.

Resident doctors across all Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) medical colleges and hospitals observed symbolic black ribbon protests. In a statement, BMC MARD said the safety of healthcare professionals was “non-negotiable” and called for time-bound justice, a zero-tolerance policy towards violence in hospitals and strengthened security across healthcare institutions.

Resident doctors at KEM Hospital, Sion Hospital and Cooper Hospital also organised black ribbon protests without disrupting hospital services.

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At Cooper Hospital, resident doctors too sought cancellation of Mhatre’s corporator membership, a fast-track trial in the case, immediate intervention by the State Women’s Commission over the alleged assault on women doctors and nurses, improved security arrangements on hospital campuses, and implementation of National Medical Commission norms governing resident doctors’ working hours.

Mhatre and three aides had been accused of assaulting two doctors, including a woman doctor, besides two nurses and a healthcare staff at the KDMC-run Shastrinagar Hospital on Monday evening following a dispute over the treatment of a pregnant woman. CCTV footage of the assault went viral, triggering widespread outrage among the medical fraternity. While three of his aides were arrested on Tuesday, Mhatre was arrested on Wednesday.