Protesting doctors insist apology must be made in person at casualty ward; Sawant claims issue nearly resolved
Panaji: Tensions continued at Goa Medical College (GMC) after resident doctors demanded a personal apology from Health Minister Vishwajit Rane for allegedly abusing and threatening Chief Medical Officer Dr. Rudresh Kuttikar. However, Chief Minister Pramod Sawant on Monday said that Rane had already extended a public apology.
“I convinced them that he publicly tendered his apology and the issue has to be resolved,” CM Sawant told reporters after meeting with members of the Goa Association of Resident Doctors (GARD), GMC dean Dr. S.M. Bandekar, and senior consultants.
The protest erupted following Rane’s directive on Saturday to suspend Dr. Kuttikar based on a complaint by a journalist from a Marathi daily. The journalist alleged that the doctor refused to administer an injection and referred the patient to an urban health centre instead.
Apology Without Cameras, But In Person: Doctors
While the CM assured GARD that he would visit the casualty department on Tuesday to personally address the concerns, the doctors insisted that Health Minister Rane must accompany him and tender an in-person apology — even without media presence.
“They raised around 10 issues with me. Nine issues have been resolved. I assured them that such incidents will not happen again at GMC,” Sawant said, urging the doctors not to go on strike.
Asked specifically about the apology demand, GMC dean Dr. Bandekar admitted, “That part was not discussed.”
Earlier, CM Sawant had assured doctors that Dr. Kuttikar would not be suspended, despite Rane’s public order.
