Himachal Pradesh government has terminated the services of Dr Raghav Narula, the senior resident doctor accused of assaulting a patient at Indira Gandhi Medical College and Hospital (IGMC) Shimla.
The decision comes just two days after a viral video showed Dr Narula brutally punching patient Arjun from Mashaut village (Kupvi, Shimla) on his hospital bed following a bronchoscopy procedure on Monday.
The government’s action marks an escalation from the initial suspension ordered on Tuesday. Dr Narula had been removed from duty pending an inquiry by a high-power committee formed under the Chief Minister’s directions.
An FIR was registered against the accused doctor at the behest of Shimla SSP Sanjeev Gandhi. The incident sparked widespread outrage after the video went viral on social media, showing the altercation between the doctor and patient.
While Dr Narula and the Resident Doctors Association claimed the patient provoked the incident by using abusive language and physically assaulting the doctor first, the government’s termination decision indicates a zero-tolerance approach toward violence in healthcare settings.
Health Minister Dhani Ram Shandil had earlier announced that the government would issue an advisory on doctor-patient conduct to prevent such incidents in future.
The termination sends a strong message about maintaining professional conduct and patient safety in government healthcare institutions, though the case continues to highlight the complex challenges of doctor-patient relationships in overburdened public hospitals.
