NEW DELHI – Karnataka Medical Council warned the doctors against taking part in spreading communal disharmony in the society. The medical body observed that some medical professionals are involved in such criminal activity.
In a statement issued on Tuesday, the council said that participating in such activities will be a violation of medical ethics warranting legal action.
“It is brought to the notice of Karnataka Medical Council (KMC) that the doctors are actively participating in the spreading of communal disharmony through social media,” reads a statement signed by Dr. Shamaro B. Patil, registrar of the council.
The council further said that the participation of the doctors in such unethical activities clearly amounts to professional misconduct for the reason that a doctor is supposed to treat the patient irrespective of his/her caste/religion.
Reminding the doctors their professional ethics, the council said they are supposed to work in such a way that there should not be even a petite scope for violation of either medical ethics or professional conduct.
“All the medical practitioners working in the state of Karnataka are hereby informed that they shall not be part of any issues pertaining to criminal disharmony and in case it is brought to the notice of KMC regarding the violation of the medical ethics or professional misconduct in this regard, such medical practitioners will be dealt with in accordance with the law,” said the council which describes its vision is ‘to provide justice to the aggrieved party in the judicial inquiry proceedings at the earliest.
Bhahutva Karnataka, a group striving for maintaining plurality of the state, has lauded the council for standing up against communalism.
“We appreciate Karnataka Medical Council for taking a stand against communal elements among the medical fraternity,” it tweeted.
However, reacting to the council’s statement, a physician Dr. Jonathan Fernandez said if the council is serious about its statement, it should have taken action against certain doctors for spewing hate all these days.
He tweeted, “Interestingly, no notice has been served on any doctor so far. If they (Karnataka Medical Council) are serious about this, maybe some action could have been taken against certain such doctors who have forgotten their Hippocratic oath which is evident from the fact that they are routinely spewing hate. But as with all things Indian #MajorityPrivilege exists so won’t hold my breath.”
The council’s attention was drawn towards cases where doctors were found spreading hate on social media with impunity. Dr Jagadish Hiremath, who is president of the Cardiology Society of India, was found guilty of sending out hate-filled messages through social media.
This article first appeared on clarionindia.net