Shiv Sena Corporator Ramesh Mhatre, who had allegedly assaulted a lady doctor and nurses at Mumbai’s Kalyan Dombivli Municipal Corporation’s Shastrinagar Hospital, has been arrested by the police.
According to police, Mhatre has been booked under Sections 132 and 121 (1) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.
His arrest came after the doctors, nurses and staff at the civic hospital went on strike.
They demanded immediate action against the ruling Shiv Sena corporator and adequate security arrangements for the staff at the hospital.
The alleged assault took place on Tuesday, when Shiv Sena corporator Ramesh Mhatre and his supporters slapped a lady doctor and brutally beat nurses following a dispute over the referral of a pregnant woman.
A video of the alleged incident has also gone viral on social media. The purported CCTV footage shows Mhatre slapping a lady doctor while she was talking to someone on the phone.
Mhatre is also seen grabbing a hospital staff member by the collar before his supporters brutally thrashed him.
What Mhatre said on the assaulting the doctors?
Amid widespread outrage and criticism, Mhatre expressed his regret over the “physical altercation” but denied raising hand against the lady doctor.
“I regret the physical altercation that took place. I state with full confidence that I did not raise my hand against the female doctor. What appears in the CCTV footage might look that way due to the camera angle. I address her informally—using the casual ‘Tu’—because she is like a daughter to me; I am not even aware of her marital status,” he said in a statement.
He further explained that the lady doctor was talking on the phone, ignoring his grievance. “So, I tapped her hand,” he claimed.
“We have been guided by Balasaheb’s teachings; we have never raised a hand against women, nor will we ever do so in the future. This incident occurred due to systemic shortcomings within the hospital; we will strive to address these deficiencies,” the ruling Shiv Sena corporator added.