Kin create ruckus at pvt hosp, attack & injure 8 cops, 6 held

Bhopal: Chaos erupted at a private hospital on Raisen Road here on Wednesday after a patient's death, as family members, relatives and villagers created a ruckus, alleging that the duty doctor had administered a wrong injection that led to the patient's death. Police were called to the scene and tried to pacify the agitating crowd, but the situation quickly escalated.Tensions boiled over when officers summoned an ambulance to shift the body from the hospital to the mortuary. A large crowd surrounded the vehicle and tried to pull the body out, intent on placing it on the road to block traffic in protest. Women attacked policemen with slippers; officers, after prolonged attempts to calm the mob, resorted to force and detained a few people. The crowd panicked and began pelting stones at the police. Eight officers suffered injuries in the ensuing scuffle, and police vehicles were vandalised.The commotion lasted nearly 30 minutes, snarling traffic in the area. Piplani police called in reinforcements from Awadhpuri and Govindpura stations to regain control. Officers registered a case against those involved under charges of rioting, vandalism, damaging govt vehicles and obstructing govt work. Around six people were arrested.According to SI Santosh Raghuvanshi, the deceased was identified as Laxman Dhanak, 35, a resident of Chhawani Pathar in Bilkhiria who worked at a shop in Patel Nagar. Originally from Sagar district, Dhanak collapsed at his home on March 2. His family rushed him to the Raisen Road hospital, where he was under treatment. He died around 2 am on Wednesday.Word of his death spread quickly, drawing relatives from Chhawani Pathar to the hospital overnight. By Wednesday morning, 20 to 25 women had gathered outside the hospital gate, trying to enter the ICU. Hospital staff, citing the safety of other patients, urged them to leave. In the process, one woman sustained a head injury, further inflaming tensions. The hospital alerted the police, who arrived to intervene.Around 10.30 am, as Dhanak's body was loaded into the ambulance for transfer to the mortuary, the crowd again surrounded it, demanding to place the corpse on the road. When police told them to stand back, women struck officers with slippers. After fruitless pacification efforts, the police used force, sparking the stone-throwing melee that injured eight officers.The deceased's relatives and villagers escalated their demands. They first alleged medical negligence from a wrong injection, calling for the doctor's and staff's arrest. The family also demanded an FIR against them. Police took the duty doctor and hospital employees to the station for questioning, even arranging a video call so protesters could see them — a request they honored. Later, noting Dhanak had five children, they sought Rs 5 lakh in compensation from the hospital, blaming its negligence for the death.