The atmosphere at Alwar's Rajiv Gandhi General Hospital turned tense late on Wednesday night when security guards who had arrived to clear attendants from the wards ended up in a sharp confrontation with patients' relatives. The argument grew so heated that the hospital premises were thrown into chaos for a long stretch, with the standoff eventually spilling into pushing and shoving. The episode has raised serious questions about the hospital's night-time arrangements and the way its administration functions.
According to people present at the scene, the trouble began when guards entered the wards and started telling relatives sitting with patients to leave. Words were exchanged, and the exchange quickly snowballed into a major dispute, with arguments and commotion carrying on from both sides for quite a while.
Relatives recount what happened
Sonu, a resident of Jadla in Kathumar, said his mother had been admitted to the district hospital three days earlier with an intestinal infection. He was sitting beside her in the ward at night when the guards arrived and began ordering attendants to step out. Sonu alleges that during the argument a guard grabbed his collar and pushed him out of the ward. Seeing this, others nearby also reacted angrily, and the situation grew more charged.
Questions over the guards' conduct
Satendra Kumar, a resident of Ajarka, also took exception to the guards' behaviour. He said his wife had been admitted after a brain haemorrhage. She was on an IV drip at night and he was seated beside her when, he said, the guards came over and shoved him out of the ward. The conduct left the relatives seething, and the uproar continued in the hospital for a long time.
It is also alleged that night superintendent Ramesh Chand Jat, who was responsible for managing the arrangements at the time, was asleep behind a closed door and did not step out even as the commotion raged.
On-duty doctor steps in to calm things down
As word of the uproar spread, the on-duty doctor reached the spot. He first knocked on the night superintendent's door and called him out. The doctor then spoke with both the guards and the relatives, talked them down and managed to defuse the situation. The incident has thrown up several questions about the hospital's security and its administrative oversight at night. The hospital administration says the matter will be investigated and necessary action taken.
