Woman doctor at SGPC-run medical college at Vallah dies by suicide

PK Jaiswar

Amritsar, March 10

A woman doctor doing her internship at the SGPC-run Sri Guru Ram Das Institute of Medical Sciences and Research at Vallah committed suicide at her hostel situated in the hospital complex here on the intervening night of Wednesday and Thursday.

Her family members alleged that the victim, identified as Pamposh (26), a resident of Ramamandi in Jalandhar, was being subjected to casteist slurs by several of her colleagues.

Following a complaint by the victim’s mother Kamlesh Rani, the police have booked two professors and four students among 10 persons on the charge of abetment to suicide and under provisions of the SC & ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989.

Mukhwinder Singh Bhullar, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Investigations) confirmed the incident and said that investigations were in progress.

“The family has lodged a complaint against several doctors and we are investigating their roles,” he added. Whoever is found responsible for the incident during the probe would be arrested, he said.

The body was handed over to the family members after the post-mortem conducted by a three-member medical board to ascertain the cause of death.

Kamlesh Rani, the complainant, stated to the police that Pamposh was doing her internship after completing her MBBS at the college. While naming several doctors, including two professors, she alleged that they used to harass her by making casteist slurs due to which she was very disturbed. She alleged that the victim had told her that they used to threaten by saying that they would allow her to complete her MBBS.

On the basis of her complaint, the Vallah police registered a case under Section 306 of the IPC (Abetment of suicide) and Section 3 of the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989.

A police official preferring anonymity said the incident came to light when the victim did not respond to the calls of family members for two days. Worried family members came to the hostel and found her hanging from the ceiling.

“It was gross negligence on the part of hostel and college authorities that she did not come out of her room for two days and they had not noticed it,” he said.

Among those named in the complaint are Dr Bir Davinder Singh, Dr Pratibha, Head of the Department of Gynaecology, Professor Swati, Dr Piyush, Gagandeep Kaur, Prabhnemat, Priyanka, Namisha, Karanbir Singh and Jimmy Steno.

Police said investigations were in progress and their roles were being looked into.