Within hours of Chief Minister D V Sadananda Gowda promising action against a patient’s relatives responsible for the recent attack on doctors and nurses at the Sri Jayadeva Institute of Cardiovascular Sciences and Research, the City police arrested three persons on Tuesday.
Lalitha, wife of Mrutyunjaya (69), a native of Tumkur, and her sons Praveen and Naveen were apprehended by the police for manhandling the staff at the government-run hospital.
Mrutyunjaya, suffering from a heart disease, died on Sunday despite the efforts of the hospital’s staff. His relatives, however, accused doctors of negligence.
The patient’s son, along with his friends and relatives, ran amok in the hospital, assaulting the doctors and staff nurses on duty. Two doctors Kailas K Bhagali and Ghananjeya were seriously injured. The former suffered internal injury in his ear. Nurses Srivani, Nazeera Banu, and hospital assistant Raghavendra were also injured. The mob, consisting of about 20, also smashed the furniture and hospital records.
The chief minister had ordered immediate action. He also said that similar acts will be considered non-bailable offences in the future. Earlier, during a visit to the hospital on Tuesday, Medical Education Minister S A Ramdas had promised the staff that necessary measures would be taken and the guilty punished.
The institute director, Dr C N Manjunath, said that the attack on doctors was “unacceptable”. He said that Mrutyunjaya’s chances of survival were “slim”. In his opinion, insecurity created among doctors by such incidents was the main reason for their refusal to serve in rural areas.
Some of the doctors who wore black ribbons in protest withdrew their agitation.
