LAHORE: Justice Ijaz Ahmed Chaudhry of the Lahore High Court (LHC) will start on Monday the hearing of a petition seeking instructions for the city police to charge the doctors under provisions of Anti Terrorism Act for attacking journalists at the Jinnah Hospital.
The petitioner, Imtiaz Rasheed Qureshi, through his counsel, Barrister Farooq Hasan, submitted in the petition that Professor Dr Javed Akram, the principal of Allam Iqbal Medical College and in-charge of Jinnah Hospital, and Dr Hamid Butt, the president of the Young Doctor Association, Punjab, had instigated the doctors to thrash journalists on March 31st.
He said they were guilty of several criminal offences, including keeping several dozens of journalists in unlawful confinement and indulging in acts that attracted anti terrorism laws.
While several journalists were busy covering the protest by a family against the death of their patient due to alleged negligence of doctors, Dr Javed Akram called all the journalists for negotiations with them inside his office in the administration block of the hospital, he added.
He said as the journalists entered his office, about 50 doctors armed with sticks attacked the journalists ruthlessly. He said they also snatched cameras and their recording equipment.
He said police played the role of silent spectators. Afterwards, on the orders of Dr Javed Akram, doctors of the hospital attacked the journalists after locking them in a room.
The petitioner submitted that the act of the respondents was in violation of freedom of speech guaranteed by the constitution.
He added that the role of the police in the incident also showed that it was also against the concept of right of the speech.
He said the doctors had committed dereliction of both legal and medical responsibilities by calling for closure of emergency services of the Jinnah Hospital and other nearby medical facilities in the city since the evening of March 31st.
Barrister Hassan prayed to the court to order the Punjab health secretary, the federal health secretary, the Punjab law secretary, and the Lahore police chief to take appropriate penal action under ATA against Dr Akram and Dr Butt. He said other miscreants should also be identified and dealt with according to the law.
He also requested the court to direct Pakistan Medical Association chairman and Pakistan Medical and Dental Council to take disciplinary action against the doctors.
Source: The News
Date:4/4/2010
