The incident involved Dr Raghav Nirula, Senior Resident in the Department of Pulmonary Medicine, and a 36-year-old male patient identified as Arjun.
A video of the incident had gone viral on social media.
The Directorate of Medical Education and Research (DMER), Himachal Pradesh, has terminated the services of a senior resident doctor at Indira Gandhi Medical College and Hospital (IGMCH) in state capital Shimla following an inquiry into a scuffle between the doctor and a patient earlier this week. According to an order issued by the DMER on Wednesday, the action was taken on the basis of a preliminary report submitted by the Disciplinary Inquiry Committee of IGMC and a subsequent fact-finding inquiry ordered by the state government.
The incident involved Dr Raghav Nirula, Senior Resident in the Department of Pulmonary Medicine, and a 36-year-old male patient identified as Arjun. The hospital’s disciplinary committee, in its initial findings, reported that a scuffle had taken place between the two and recommended that the doctor be sent on leave pending further probe. Meanwhile, a First Information Report (FIR) was lodged by the patient’s attendants, which is currently under police investigation.
Based on the preliminary report and a video clip of the incident that surfaced on social media platforms, Dr Nirula was placed under suspension on December 22 under Clause 9 of the Resident Doctor Policy, 2025, with immediate effect and until further orders. Subsequently, the state government constituted a high-level inquiry committee directing it to examine all aspects of the matter and submit a fact-finding report within 72 hours. The committee submitted its report to the Director through the Principal, IGMC Shimla, on December 24. After examining the inquiry report, the competent authority concluded that both the patient and the doctor were responsible for the incident. The conduct of Dr Nirula was held to amount to “misconduct, misbehaviour, acts of commission and conduct unbecoming of a public servant.”
(With inputs from news agency ANI).
