Doc strike on despite Court rap

Doc strike on despite Court rap

Hyderabad, Dec. 7: Junior doctors have decided to continue their agitation over the alleged attack on one of their colleagues by MIM MLA Afsar Khan, even as the AP High Court warned of action against them and the 12th additional chief metropolitan Magistrate asked the Nampally police to register an attempt to murder case against Mr Afsar Khan and 29 others.
The decision to continue on the warpath was taken at a meeting of the AP Junior Doctors Association held here on Friday evening. “We are not going to call off the strike till our demands are met,” said APJDA state president, Dr G. Raju. He demanded that Mr Afsar Khan should be arrested under non bailable charges and the government should move an ordinance to protect doctors. “We are going to represent to the Speaker again to disqualify him,” said Raju.
On Friday, doctors conducted dharna at Nizams Institute of Medical Sciences demanding the arrest of Mr Afsar Khan. Meanwhile, the AP High Court on Friday observed it would not allow the agitation to go on at the cost of the lives of poor patients. “If junior doctors of Niloufer hospital continue their strike the court may direct the State Government to initiate action against them,” said a division bench comprising of acting Chief Justice Bilal Nazki and Justice Ramesh Ranganathan.
The bench was dealing with a Public Interest Litigation filed by an advocate urging the court to restrain senior doctors from joining the strike. Justice Nazki asked the Advocate General, Mr C.V. Mohan Reddy, whether there were any provisions for taking action against the striking doctors. The AG said that government could ask the Medical Council of India to suspend their registration.
However, he termed as false media reports about increasing number of child deaths in Niloufer Hospital after the strike began. Mr Mohan Reddy pointed out that the average mortality rate per day in the hospital was 10 and the average admission was 97 patients per day. During the strike, the mortality rate was 5 and admission 76 per day, he added. The case was posted to Tuesday.