The Indian Medical Association (IMA) Manipur State Branch has strongly condemned the life-threatening assault on Prof. Ch. Pritamkumar Singh, a senior doctor at the Regional Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS), during protests following a patient’s death on September 21.
Prof. Singh, Unit Head of the Department of Obstetrics & Gynaecology, was attacked while on duty and is now battling for life in the Intensive Care Unit with grievous injuries. The assault took place on the RIMS campus during violent protests after the death of 35-year-old Chingshubam Manju Devi, who succumbed to complications following childbirth.
The incident came a day after another patient, 50-year-old Yambem Sanjoy, died shortly after being readmitted with arm pain, triggering consecutive tragedies that fueled public anger.
In an emergency meeting, the IMA Manipur Branch, along with the Imphal Obstetrics & Gynaecology Society and the Association for Health Care Providers of India, termed the attack “uncalled for” against “a very dutiful doctor who tried his level best to save the life of the patient.”
As part of their protest, doctors across Manipur will shut down all routine services—government, private, and individual clinics—from 6 am on September 23 to 6 am on September 24. All doctors will also wear black badges.
The organisations demanded that RIMS authorities immediately register an FIR under the Manipur Medicare Service Personnel and Medicare Service Institutions (Prevention of Violence and Damage to Property) Act, 2015, which prescribes up to three years’ imprisonment and fines of up to Rs 50,000 for such offences.
A sit-in demonstration has been called at the Medical Directorate on September 23 from 9 am to 12 pm, while memorandums will be submitted to the Governor and the IMA national headquarters in New Delhi.
Expressing “sincere condolences” to the family of Late Chingshubam Manju Devi, the medical associations stressed that violence against healthcare workers gravely undermines patient care and safety across the system.
