Confirming media reports today The PMSF said the Ahmedabad Civil Hospital had created separate wards for Hindu and Muslim Covid-19 patients and the hospital’s medical superintendent, Gunvant Rathod, has claimed that this had been done on the orders of the Gujarat government.
The PMSF members include multiple doctors earlier with the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), New Delhi, and other medical institutions in Delhi, Patna, Calcutta, Jaipur and Mumbai.
The Progressive Medicos and Scientists Forum (PMSF), a non-government body of doctors, said such acts of “differentiating between patients on the basis of religion” would “undermine the confidence” of sections of the population in government hospitals.
PMSF an organisation of doctors and scientists has demanded an unconditional apology from the Gujarat CM, Vijay Rupani for the creation of different wards for the COVID-19 patients based on their religion in a Ahmedabad based hospital.
Stating that “when the entire world is fighting an epic battle against the biggest health emergency that has encompassed the entire world in over a century” the bjp ruling party has stooped to this level that it is differentiating on the basis of religion.
[splco_quote]“We demand from the Chief Minister of Gujarat, Vijay Rupani to tender an unqualified apology for this policy measure taken by his government; dismiss his deputy and the state health minister, and meet-out strongest possible punishment to others who conspired in committing this act,” reads a statement issues by the organisation. [/splco_quote]
Calling upon doctors and health workers to expose such efforts, the PMSF appealed to “Doctors and other health care professionals not to meekly submit to the conspiracies of the government and the communal establishment.
They should rather expose any such attempt irrespective of the powers that be. Failure to do so would only lead to health workers becoming the chief recipient of the people’s ire against the system, especially as the policies being pursued by the government to tackle the ongoing health emergency have already resulted in untold suffering to the people.”
Indian Express on Wednesday had reported that “the coronavirus patients and suspected cases at Ahmedabad Civil Hospital, where 1,200 beds have been set aside for COVID-19, have been segregated into wards depending on their faith.
While Medical Superintendent Dr Gunvant H Rathod said award for Hindu patients and another for Muslim patients had been created as per a state government decision, Deputy Chief Minister and Health Minister Nitin Patel denied any knowledge of it”.
Although the health minister has promised to inquire into the incident, the PMSF said, the fact that such differentiation has occurred in a civil hospital “speaks volumes about the state of governance under the BJP state government”.
[splco_quote]“If indeed this act had been committed without the minister’s knowledge, he should have apologised for such an unpardonable act by the officers of his department and should have given an undertaking to take the strictest possible action against the culprits,” the PMSF said. [/splco_quote]
