Sassoon General Hospital is again making headlines for the wrong reasons. Activists have alleged that doctors at Sassoon Hospital are abandoning destitute patients at night instead of treating them.
This situation has been exposed by Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi activist Ritesh Gaikwad and social activist Dadasaheb Gaikwad. As a result, a case has been registered against a doctor and his colleagues at the Yerwada Police Station.
Dadasaheb Gaikwad serves destitute patients by admitting injured persons found on the streets to Sassoon. One year ago, he admitted a patient for treatment at Sassoon. However, the next day, when they went to see the patient, Dadasaheb found that he had disappeared. Upon inquiry, they discovered that the doctor had taken the patient away at night and did not bring him back. This incident prompted him to keep a check on hospital activity.
Here's how the matter came into light
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On Monday at 1:30am, Ritesh was standing outside the hospital with a rickshaw. One of the doctors at Sassoon inquired whether he would drop off a patient.
Ritesh questioned how the patient could be left alone without a relative. The doctor responded that he usually pays ₹500 to their regular rickshaw driver to handle it. As directed by the doctor, hospital staff placed a severely injured patient, whose legs were missing and with a needle in his hand, into the rickshaw.
The doctor and his colleague, along with the rickshaw carrying the patient, drove to a thick banyan tree in Vishrantwadi. The doctor left the patient under the tree in the dark and rain.
Ritesh informed the police about this, and with Dadasaheb’s help, the patient was readmitted to Sassoon Hospital for treatment. They also complained to the Yerwada Police Station late at night.
Doctor suspended by dean
Following the incident, Eknath Pawar, Dean of Sassoon Hospital, issued a suspension letter to the accused doctor.
The letter reads, “We have requested strict action against the doctor, and this incident is a disgrace to humanity. An inquiry has been initiated into the said case, and the suspension of the concerned doctor is being taken immediately.”
An FIR for an offense under Section 125 (act endangering life or personal safety) of the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita (BNS) has been filed. The case has been transferred to Bundgarden Police Station for further investigation as the incident occurred at Sassoon Hospital, informed the police.
Sassoon is often in the news for unsettling instances, such as the escape of drug kingpin Lalit Patil on October 2, 2023, the December 31 alcohol party, a ragging incident involving female students, a rat bite incident involving patients admitted to the ICU, and the manipulation of blood samples of the juvenile involved in the Porsche car crash in the city, all of which have tarnished the hospital's image.
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