If Doctors Can't Be Protected, Shut Down All Hospitals: Kerala HC Condemns Doctor's Murder

In an urgent special sitting, the Kerala High Court condemned the state and police authorities for failing to prevent the horrific murder of the 23-year-old doctor who was stabbed to death by an accused brought by the police for medical examination.

A two-judge division bench comprising Justice Devan Ramachandran and Justice Kauser Edappagath orally remarked, "If doctors can't be protected, shut down all hospitals." Condemning the police for failing to protect the doctor, the bench further remarked, "You have failed this girl. This is a case where you brought a man from your custody. The police should have maintained continuous vigilance."

As doctors protest intensify across Kerala demanding their safety, the Kerala government will be discussing ways to ensure the safety of doctors on Thursday evening. Majority of doctors haven't reported to work in the last 24 hours. They are demanding that the government implements a new legislation to protect doctors with immediate effect. The emergency meeting is scheduled to be held at the conference hall at the Chief Minister’s office in Thiruvananthapuram. CM Pinarayi Vijayan called for the emergency meeting after discussions with representatives of various doctors’ associations in the morning.

Kerala Doctor Stabbed To Death

On Wednesday, a young woman duty doctor was stabbed multiple times by an accused who was brought in for treatment to the Kottarakkara Taluk Hospital in Kollam district, Kerala. The young doctor was identified as Vandana Das, a 23-year-old house surgeon who was on duty at the hospital as a part of her training. She suffered multiple stab wounds to the chest and neck. Dr Das was immediately rushed to a private hospital in Thiruvananthapuram, but she succumbed to her wounds.

Police have taken the accused, Sandeep, a school teacher, into custody from his house after his family members complained about his violent behaviour. The police took Sandeep to the hospital to treat a minor injury in his leg and for a regular medical examination. When Dr Das was attending to his wounds in the dressing room, Sandeep suddenly got violent, grabbed surgical scissors and a scalpel, and stabbed her multiple times.

The court also observed that since the accused was exhibiting abnormal behaviour, the police should have anticipated such an incident. "He should have been restrained. Policing is to understand and anticipate the unanticipated. We don't need you otherwise. Should it not be your first and foremost responsibility to ensure there is no violation of the law?" remarked the bench.

The police revealed that they heard a commotion while waiting outside the dressing room and witnessed the doctor running out with stab wounds, crying for help. The accused was chasing her with surgical scissors and a scalpel in his hand. He attacked the policemen and vandalised some areas of the hospital before the police could subdue him.

The Indian Medical Association informed that Dr Vandana Das was a house surgeon at Azeezia Medical College Hospital and was on duty at the government hospital. IMA expressed anger and grief over the incident.

The Kerala Government Medical Officers Association (KGMOA) protested against Dr Vandana Das’s murder and announced a strike in Kerala’s Kollam District, demanding adequate protection for doctors. The IMA, house surgeons association, and postgraduate and undergraduate medical students joined the protest. They said that authorities have been informed of the growing attack on doctors. However, their demand for a remedial measure and the necessity of an act like POCSO haven’t been taken into consideration.

The new medical protocol that was implemented a year ago, requiring the police to wait outside while the accused is being treated, seemed to be one of the reasons that the police weren’t able to prevent the young doctor’s murder.

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan visited the private hospital where the young doctor’s body was kept and expressed his condolences to her parents. He assured them that the strictest possible action would be taken against the accused. Her parents had arrived at the hospital after hearing about the incident. Dr Vandana Das had sustained six severe stab wounds in the neck, chest, abdomen, head, and spinal cord. The police report said 11 wounds were inflicted on her, but there could be more. Her autopsy report has yet to arrive.

The accused, Sandeep, was taken to the Parippally medical hospital and produced before a magistrate’s court, where he was remanded in custody for 14 days. He was sent to the central prison at Poojappura in Thiruvananthapuram.

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