Two held over Raj doctor’s suicide as protests continue
Two people, including Bharatiya Janata Party leader Jitendra Gothwal, were on Thursday arrested for allegedly abetting the suicide of a doctor in Rajasthan’s Dausa district, police said.
The doctor was found dead at her residence on Tuesday, a day after being booked for negligence and murder of a pregnant woman who died during treatment.
Widespread protests broke out across Rajasthan and New Delhi after news of the doctor’s death came to light. Demanding action against the culprits, private hospitals and nursing homes continued the suspension of all routine services in the state on Thursday.
Gothwal and one Ram Manohar have been booked under the Indian Penal Code (IPC) sections 384 (extortion), 388 (extortion by threat of accusation), and 306 (abetment to suicide).
In a tweet, Gothwal said he was
arrested late on Wednesday night from his residence in Jaipur. “A false case has been lodged under IPC 306 against me for abetment of suicide...” He called his arrest a “revenge” for sending a train ticket to Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and asking her to come to Rajasthan to take cognisance of a rape complaint against five including a ruling party lawmaker’s son.
Four IPS officers, including Dausa SP Anil Kumar and Dholpur SP Shiv Raj Meena, were transferred on Thursday over the incident. The transfer orders were issued by the state’s department of personnel hours after CM Ashok Gehlot directed removal of the Dausa and Dholpur SPS.
Three MPS also raised the issue in the Lok Sabha. DNV Senthilkumar (DMK), who holds an MBBS degree, said such incidents could disturb the doctor-patient ratio in the country. There was a need to distinguish between medical negligence and medical complications, he said.
Jaskaur Meena, who represents Dausa in the Lok Sabha, slammed the Congress government in Rajasthan for creating an atmosphere against the doctor after a patient’s death.
She alleged that while the state government has failed to prevent crimes against women, including rapes, a doctor was booked under stringent provisions of the criminal law.