On Tuesday afternoon, Agripada police arrested one of the three women doctors accused of abetting the suicide of Nair Hospital resident doctor Payal Tadvi (26). The police said, Dr Mehare will be produced before the session’s court on Wednesday.

Mumbai police spokesperson DCP Manjunath Shinge, said that the police are on the lookout for her two absconding colleagues, Dr Hema Ahuja and Dr Ankita Khandilwal, who have sought anticipatory bails. The three doctors are booked under the IPC as well Maharashtra prohibition of Ragging Act and the Atrocities Act.

Dr Tadvi, who was pursuing gynaecology, had committed suicide by hanging in her hostel room on May 22. Dr Tadvi’s husband Dr Salman and mother Abeda, who came to Mumbai on Tuesday, have demanded “strictest action” against the three women doctors who they alleged had ragged and humiliated her on WhatsApp through casteist remarks and overburdened her with work. The family told reporters they don’t want another doctor to take an extreme step due to such kind of harassment.

State medical education minister Girish Mahajan told reporters that there was evidence with the police to suggest Payal faced mental harassment. A report prepared by the 21-member anti-ragging committee of the civic-run Nair Hospital, was submitted to the Maharashtra University of Health Sciences (MUHS) later on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, several members of Tadvi community continued their protests outside Nair Hospital, near Mumbai Central railway station. Mahajan met their representatives and asked them to withdraw their protest and give the administration two more days to bring the accused to book. The Tadvis have agreed, but threatened a scaled-up protest on June 2.