Government Rajindra Hospital, Patiala, incident: Step up investigation, Punjab Minister to cops

Patiala, March 3

A day after the video of youngsters, who barged into the Emergency wing of the Government Rajindra Hospital on February 23 and attacked a patient, surfaced on the social media, Health Minister Balbir Singh visited the hospital and assured the authorities concerned of “strict action against the accused”.

The minister, who was away to attend a state-level function, met the doctors at the hospital along with senior police officers today.

“I have directed the police to expedite investigations into the case. The culprits will be arrested soon. We will put stringent provisions of the law against them as the security of the doctors and the patients is of paramount importance to us,” said the minister, accompanied by Patiala SP (City) Sarfaraz Alam.

The CCTV footage had raised concerns over the security measures at the government hospital.

Sources said road rage may be the reason behind the attack. The victim, Akshay (30), said he was attacked by unidentified assailants at Sai Market when he was returning home with his friend and sister-in-law. After the attack, Akshay was rushed to Rajindra Hospital, where, around 9 pm, the attackers barged into the hospital and again attacked him. Veena, Akshay’s mother, has accused the hospital and the police of their callous attitude.

She had said, “Initially, the hospital security did not intervene when the attackers arrived on the hospital premises and after the attack, the police did nothing to nab the attackers. The hospital security did not lodge a complaint despite the suspect having trespassed on the hospital premises and attacked my son.”

Meanwhile, the police said they were investigating the matter and the accused would be held soon.