Rs 5 Lakh Fine, 7 Years Jail Term: Kerala Order Protecting Healthcare Workers

Kerala Governor Arif Mohammed Khan on Tuesday signed the ordinance that provides for stringent punishment, including imprisonment of up to seven years and a maximum fine of Rs 5 lakh for those found guilty of causing grievous bodily harm to those working in the health services sector in the state, official sources said.

The ordinance was approved on May 17 in a Cabinet meeting chaired by Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan in the wake of the brutal killing of Dr Vandana Das by a patient -- G Sandeep, a school teacher by profession -- at a taluk hospital in Kollam district.

Under the Kerala Healthcare Service Workers and Healthcare Service Institutions (Prevention of Violence and Damage to Property) Amendment Ordinance, anyone found guilty of causing grievous bodily harm to any healthcare worker or professional would be punished with imprisonment ranging from one year to seven years and a fine of Rs one lakh to Rs 5 lakh.

The ordinance also provides that anyone who commits or attempts to commit or incites or inspires an act of violence against healthcare workers or those working in healthcare institutions shall be punished with imprisonment for a term of not less than 6 months and up to 5 years and with a fine between Rs 50,000 and Rs 2 lakh.

Prior to the amendment, under the Kerala Healthcare Service Workers and Healthcare Service Institutions (Prevention of Violence and Damage to Property) Act of 2012, any act of violence against a healthcare service person or damage to property of a medical institution carried a punishment of a maximum three years imprisonment and a fine upto Rs 50,000.

Besides the enhancement of punishment, the ordinance states that the trials in cases lodged under the Act have to be completed in a timely manner, and that special courts will be designated in each district to ensure speedy adjudication.

The ordinance also states that cases registered under the Act have to be investigated by a police officer not below the rank of Inspector and the probe has to be completed within 60 days of registration of the FIR.

Furthermore, the ordinance extends the protection under the Act to paramedical students, security guards, managerial staff, ambulance drivers, helpers who are posted and working in healthcare institutions as well as those health workers who would be notified in the official government gazette from time to time.

Earlier, the protection under the Act was only available to registered and provisionally registered medical practitioners, registered nurses, medical students, nursing students and paramedical staff working in healthcare institutions.

Dr Vandana Das, a native of Kaduthuruthy area of Kottayam district and the only child of her parents, was a house surgeon at Azeezia Medical College Hospital and was working at the Kottarakkara taluk hospital as part of her training.

Sandeep, who was brought there by the police for medical treatment during the early hours of April 10, went on a sudden attacking spree using a pair of surgical scissors kept in the room where his leg injury was being dressed.

He had initially attacked the police officers and a private person who had accompanied him to the hospital and then turned on the young doctor who could not escape to safety.

She was stabbed several times and later succumbed to her injuries in a private hospital in Thiruvananthapuram where she was rushed following the attack.

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