On Sunday, a senior official said that the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has rejected the draft of the Health and Services Personnel and Clinical Establishments (Prohibition of Violence and Damage of Property) Bill, prepared by the Union Health and Family Welfare Ministry.

The proposed Bill was significant to address the issue of violence against healthcare service professionals and damage to the property of clinical establishments. It seeks maximum 10 years of imprisonment for those who attack doctors and Rs 10 lakh fine for attacking any healthcare personnel. This draft of the proposed legislation had been prepared by the Union Health Ministry in September.

A senior Health Ministry official told ANI that they have received comments from the MHA and have objected to the draft of the Bill for stopping assault against doctors. At present they have kept it on hold. According to the MHA, if there is a central law for doctors, then other people will also demand the same. Therefore, the central law to protect any specific fraternity will not come up for consideration and approval.

The draft of the Bill states that "those who commit violence and cause grievous hurt as defined in Section 320 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) to any healthcare service personnel, shall be upon conviction, be punished with imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than three years, but may extend to ten years, and with fine, which shall not be less than two lakh rupees, but which may extend to ten lakh rupees."

The draft of the Bill also stated that “to protect healthcare service personnel and property of clinical establishments against violence, it is necessary to prohibit such acts of violence, to provide for punishment by making such acts of violence as cognizable and non-bailable offence and to provide compensation for injury to healthcare service personnel or for causing damage or loss to the property of clinical establishments.”

Source: ET Healthworld