Srinagar, July 23, KNT: In what many are calling a shocking display of inhumanity, doctors at SMHS Hospital in Srinagar locked the gates of the emergency facility today, leaving patients and attendants out in the cold, literally and figuratively, after one of their colleagues was slapped by an attendant. The decision to block entry to the sick and the suffering has triggered a storm of public anger, with widespread condemnation pouring in from all quarters.
While there is unanimous support for stern action against the person who assaulted the resident doctor, netizens and civil society figures have strongly criticised the doctors’ disproportionate response that resulted in suffering for innocent patients. “Punish the attacker, yes. But punishing the entire patient community is beyond cruel,” posted one user on X (formerly Twitter), summing up the general mood on social media.
Videos and images of desperate attendants pleading for mercy outside the hospital gates have gone viral. Among them, the case of a man from Pulwama holding his electrocuted child in his arms stands as a devastating indictment of the hospital’s handling of the crisis. “My son was electrocuted and is unconscious. But the doctors have locked the gate. They don’t care,” the father said with anguish.
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Such acts of collective punishment by medical professionals, meant to uphold dignity and safety, have ironically cast a dark shadow over their role as caregivers. “When the healers turn indifferent to human pain, it marks a new low in public service,” wrote another social media user, who called for accountability and institutional reforms to prevent such breakdowns in future.
“Medical ethics, public responsibility, and human compassion were grossly undermined today. The right to protest cannot override the basic right to life and medical care. A hospital is not a battleground for ego or emotional retaliation, it is a sanctuary for those in pain,” said a social activist to the news agency Kashmir News Trust.
Another respectable citizen maintained that this incident has exposed a deep moral crisis within our healthcare system, where professional pride seems to have outweighed the very purpose of the white coat—to serve and to heal. The government must take cognisance, not just of the assault, but of the equally cruel collective response that followed.
An official said that a police case has been registered against the accused attendant and that talks are underway to resolve the standoff. But for many patients and their families, the damage, both emotional and medical, has already been done.
The people of Kashmir expect and deserve better from those entrusted with their health and lives. [KNT]
