Accused Of Driving Tribal Doctor To Suicide, Senior Doctors' Licenses Suspended, Victim's Mother Demands Arrest

Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has suspended licenses of four doctors working at BYL Nair Hospital, Mumbai on allegations of driving a 23-yr-old tribal doctor to suicide. Three senior medical students and a department head have been suspended for abetting the suicide. The three doctors have been accused of hurling casteist slurs, making fun of her for getting admission through reservation quota and harassing her in WhatsApp groups for months. A protest demanding arrest of these doctors is currently going on outside the Nair hospital.

#DrPayalTadvi's mother speaks to the media; urges authorities to arrest the accused. pic.twitter.com/BvElDV4nIR

— Mumbai Mirror (@MumbaiMirror) May 28, 2019

What happened?

Last week, on Wednesday (22nd May), Payal Tadvi, a 23-year-old resident doctor belonging to a tribal community was found dead in her hostel of the BYL Nair Hospital. On Thursday, Abeda Tadvi, the mother of the victim, filed a police complaint against three senior doctors for alleged harassment. Following the complaint, the police booked them on the charges of abetment to suicide under the Indian Penal Code and sections under the Ragging Act and the Atrocities Act.

Earlier, Abeda Tadvi, the mother of the victim, in a formal complaint to the Nair hospital had alleged that the Payal’s seniors are harassing her on the basis of their caste. Abeda had lodged the complaint on May 10, days before Payal committed suicide.

The mother, alleging that her daughter’s complaints were ignored, told News18, “I spoke to her around 4 pm that day and she told me that she was being mentally tortured. She had complained to me earlier as well and I had requested the lecturers to address the issue but they ignored it. I also tried to meet the dean, but I was not allowed. I want justice for my daughter. The medical registration of the girls who harassed my daughter should be suspended.”

Accused doctors’ demand fair investigation

Three senior doctors accused in the suicide case of Dr Payal Tadvi, who are absconding, have written to the Maharashtra Association of Resident Doctors (MARD) for a fair investigation into the case.

The doctors – Dr Hema Ahuja, Dr Bhakti Mehare, and Dr Ankita Khandelwal – after being suspended by MARD, urged the association to ignore the biases presented by the media and the police.

The accused in their defence have said that it was an excessive workload that led to Payal’s suicide and not their behaviour. “If the heavy workload is given the name of ragging, then we all have been ragged or ragging someone while performing our basic duties, then all of us should be blamed as all the workload and pressure is always transferred from our seniors and Department,” said the accused in a letter to MARD.

Brushing aside the allegation of discrimination on the basis of cast, the accused said, “Do we ever consider caste before treating patients? Do we make friends, listen to our seniors-juniors and colleagues on the basis of caste? Are we really allotted work on basis of our caste?”

Past Incidents

This is not the first time that Nair Hospital made news for discriminating doctors on the basis of their caste. In 2013, the Bombay High Court had pulled up Dr Ketan Modak from the hospital who made casteist slurs against another doctor and once said to him, “You are fit only to sew other people’s shoes.”

The doctor was suspended, “for a month from duty and for six months from work”.

Also Read: Woman Gang Raped, Mutilated In Jaipur; City Doctor Among Those Accused