Doctor Payal Salman Tadvi, 23, killed herself at a Mumbai hospital on May 22, police said
Highlights
- Payal Salman Tadvi was found dead on May 22 at BYL Nair Hospital
- Her mother said hospital didn't take action; management denied allegation
- 3 doctors accused of harassing her are missing
The mother of a 23-year-old doctor who killed herself at a state-run hospital in Mumbai has alleged that her seniors used to persistently harass her with casteist remarks. Payal Salman Tadvi, a resident doctor who was pursuing gynaecology, was found dead in her room on May 22 at BYL Nair Hospital.
Three doctors who Ms Tadvi had accused of harassing her before she killed herself are on the run. The Maharashtra Association of Resident Doctors has cancelled the memberships of the three accused, who have been identified as Hema Ahuja, Bhakti Mehar and Ankita Khandilwal, news agency ANI reported on Sunday.
Senior police officer Deepak Kundal said a First Information Report (FIR) has been filed and the three accused also face a case under a stringent law, which gives no scope for bail, to protect Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes from atrocities.
Ms Tadvi's mother, who is suffering from cancer, said they had complained to the management but no action was taken against the accused. She alleged the management assured the family they would look into the matter, but refused to commit the promise in writing.
"Whenever she used to speak to me on phone, she would say that these three (senior doctors) people torture her as she belongs to a tribal community, use casteist slurs on her. We want justice for her," Ms Tadvi's mother, Abeda, told ANI.
BYL Nair Hospital's dean Ramesh Bharmal denied the allegations. "Dr Payal's mother's claims that she had complained to the hospital about the alleged torture being meted out to her daughter are not true. We have received no complaint till date regarding this issue," said Mr Bharmal.
He said the hospital has formed an anti-ragging committee and summoned the three doctors. "They are currently not in Mumbai. The committee will file its report as soon as possible," the dean said.
A colleague of Ms Tadvi said her mother had indeed complained to the management. "If the management had acted on time, her life could have been saved and the career of the three doctors would not have gone wasted," the colleague told NDTV, asking not to be identified.