Paradip: Tension ran high in port town Paradip after a female nurse, who was allegedly subjected to mental torture and molestation by a doctor at Paradip Port Trust Hospital, died in the wee hours of Sunday.
The incident sparked outrage in the area as irate people put up the body outside the hospital and staged a demonstration demanding the dismissal and arrest of Chief Medical Officer (CMO) Dr Prahallad Panda, Sunday morning.
Apprehending unrest, forces from Paradip Model Police Station and Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) were deployed at the spot to keep a close watch on the situation.
The incident dates back to August 9 last year when a nurse on night duty at the hospital was allegedly molested by a physician Dr Badal Singh.
The survivor had then filed a written complaint against the doctor accusing him of molestation before the CMO of the hospital.
The survivor later lodged a complaint against the doctor at the Paradip Model Police Station after she failed to get justice from the hospital authorities.
Alarmed over the FIR, the CMO reached the police station and assured police to resolve the issue amicably between the complainant nurse and the doctor.
Later, a team formed by the hospital authorities started an inquiry into the incident.
The deceased had alleged Saturday before media that the probe team was only trying to cover up the matter and mentally harassing the five victim nurses during the seven month period of its probe.
Five other victim nurses had also informed the media of similar harassment by the doctor, Saturday. Later, the deceased was called to the hospital where she was subjected to severe mental torture, another victim nurse alleged, Saturday.
The hospital authorities even went on to file FIRs in the police station against the complainant nurses. As a result, the deceased reportedly experienced sudden high blood pressure.
She was first rushed to the Port Trust Hospital and later shifted to a private hospital in Cuttack after her condition deteriorated.
Her health conditions showed no sign of improvement following which she was shifted again to All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in Bhubaneswar.
However, she failed to recover and succumbed during treatment in the wee hours of Sunday.
PNN