Rules to protect good Samaritans notified

Aditi Tandon

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, June 4

People who help accident victims on roads will no longer be subjected to harassment. The government tonight notified rules to order disciplinary action against public officials who subject good Samaritans to unnecessary hassles.

The guidelines will help arrest the trend of people unwilling to stop by the road to help accident victims as happened in the case of December 16, 2012, gang rape victim and her friend.

Now, a good Samaritan who presented himself as an eyewitness in a case will have to be examined in one go. The notification also provides for initiation of disciplinary proceedings against public officials who coerces a bystander or a good Samaritan into revealing his name or other personal details.

“A bystander who calls the police about an accident shall not be compelled to reveal his name or personal details. Such disclosure will be optional, including in the medico legal form provided by hospitals. A bystander or good Samaritan who brings an accident victim to the hospital will be allowed to leave immediately after furnishing the address and no questions must be asked of him or her,” says the first of its kind order.

Lack of response by doctors to treat accident victims brought in an emergency will constitute professional misconduct under the Indian Medical Council Act.