SC seeks CBI probe report on Kolkata doctor murder by Aug 22

New Delhi: Observing that the nation cannot await another rape for changes on the ground, the Supreme Court on Tuesday constituted a 10-member task force to formulate a national protocol to ensure safety for doctors and sought a status report from the Central Bureau of Investigation by August 22 on its probe into the Kolkata doctor’s murder.

The move comes in the wake of the rape and murder of a doctor in Kolkata’s R G Kar Medical College on August 9 and disruption of OPD services in hospitals amid nationwide protests by doctors demanding security at workplace. On Tuesday, the court urged the doctors to end their stir and return to work as the task force had been formed to take care of their demands.

A bench comprising Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud, Justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra asked the task force to submit its interim report within three weeks and the final report within two months, saying, “The safety of women is a matter of national interest.”

“We have to do something right here and now to ensure that the conditions of safety are maintained in terms of protocols, which will not just be on papers but protocols which will be enforced across India,” the CJI said.

The Supreme Court had on Sunday taken suo moto cognizance of the gruesome rape and murder of a doctor in in Kolkata and decided to take up the matter for hearing.

During the hearing on Tuesday, the court constituted a National Task Force (NTF) comprising senior doctors, government officials and medical association heads.

The court said that the objective of the task force is to make recommendations with regard to modalities to be followed across India for ensuring safety of doctors and other medical professionals at workplace.

The National Task Force includes Surgeon Vice Admiral R Sarin, Dr D Nageshwar Reddy, Dr M Shreenivas, Dr Pratima Murty, Dr Goverdhan Dutt Puri, Dr Saumitra Rawat, Prof Anita Saxena, Head Cardiology, AIIMS Delhi, Prof Pallavi Sapre, Dean Grant Medical College Mumbai and Dr Padma Srivastava, Neurology Department, AIIMS.

Ex-officio members of the national task force include Cabinet Secretary to government of India, Home Secretary, Health Secretary, Chairperson of National Medical Commission and President of National Board of Examiners.

The court said that the objective of the task force is to make recommendations with regard to modalities to be followed across India for ensuring safety at workplace.

The Supreme Court took note of the doctor community’s increasing vulnerability to violence.

Medical professionals have become vulnerable to violence, particularly the women who are at risk of abuse, CJI Chandrachud observed.

The Supreme Court also suggested several measures to safeguard doctors.

The court said that resident doctors in medical colleges (public and private) and doctors in government hospitals should be formally declared as ‘public servants’.

A police outpost should be mandatorily set up within the premises of municipal hospitals, the court said, adding that institutional safety is missing for medical professionals.

There is no resting space for doctors on late night duty, Besides, basic hygiene conditions are lacking and there are not even proper rest rooms for doctors and interns, the court said.

The Apex Court’s guidelines came after two prominent doctors’ associations, the Federation of Association of Medical Consultants of India (FAMCI) and the Federation of Resident Doctors’ Association (FORDA), along with lawyer Vishal Tiwari, filed interim applications in the Supreme Court, raising urgent concerns about the safety of medical workers in India.

Their pleas come in the wake of increasing violence against healthcare professionals, including the recent case of rape and murder in Kolkata Medical College.