HC seeks committee to hear cases of medical negligence

The Bombay High Court today asked Maharashtra Government to form a committee, which would hear the cases of medical negligence, by March 31.
The order was passed by a division bench headed by Chief Justice Mohit Shah while disposing of a public interest litigation.
Under Section 7 of Maharashtra Medicare Service, Persons and Medicare Service Institution (MMSPMSI) Act, establishment of such a committee is mandatory.
The court had earlier directed the Additional Home Secretary and the Director General of Police to issue a circular within two weeks asking the police to invoke provisions of MMSPMSI Act in the cases of assault on doctors.

A copy of the circular was today submitted to the bench by government pleader Prajakta Shinde.
The court had taken a suo motu (on its own) notice of an incident in Solapur where three policemen allegedly thrashed a government doctor for refusing to attend to a woman in labour pains on December 31.

Initially, they were booked under Indian Penal Code for bailable offences and obtained bail. However, the High Court, after viewing CCTV footage, directed the government to book them under MMSPMSI Act under which offences are non-bailable.
The incident had also led to a strike by 4,000 resident doctors in Maharashtra on January 2.

Zaibibi Suleman Peerzade, the woman who was allegedly not attended to by the doctor, had intervened in the High Court case. Her lawyer, advocate Pandurang Pol, said the state was yet to form the committee as contemplated under the MMSPMSI Act.