According to Dr Gurmehar Kaur, who was on emergency duty in the ward, a group of youths badly assaulted Savan and he was then rushed to Christian Medical College and Hospital (CMCH), but was declared dead on arrival.
15-year old Savan was killed by a group of at least 15 assailants.A police control room (PCR) vehicle is now stationed outside the emergency ward of Lord Mahavira Civil Hospital, Ludhiana, 24×7 with a team of cops on patrolling duty.
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Three days after a group of at least 15 assailants butchered a 15-year old boy Savan inside the emergency ward of the hospital, the probe has found that the reason behind the clash lied somewhere in the middle of two things — egos of two groups of youths and a brewing rivalry between two groups within Scheduled Caste (SC) community, Valmikis and Sansis.
While the victim was from the Sansi group, all accused booked in the case are Valmikis, both are the communities within Scheduled Caste and living together in the EWS Colony of Ludhiana.
According to Dr Gurmehar Kaur, who was on emergency duty in the ward, a group of youths badly assaulted Savan and he was then rushed to Christian Medical College and Hospital (CMCH), but was declared dead on arrival.
Ludhiana police commissioner Kaustubh Sharma said: “Three cops led by ASI Rajinder Singh are posted at Civil Hospital police post none was on duty. An enquiry has been marked and action will be taken accordingly.”
Additional DCP-1 Rupinder Kaur Sra said that the victim and the accused were from different caste sub-groups which added to their rivalry.
Surinder Kalyan, vice-chairman, Punjab Safai Karamchari Commission, said that both Valmiki and Sansi have been living peacefully in Punjab since the 1990s when Sansi were allotted a part of EWS colony to settle down. “This is probably the first such incident where we have seen Valmikis and Sansis coming to loggerheads, otherwise they have always lived in harmony. It was during the tenure of Beant Singh as Punjab CM when Sansis were allotted a part of EWS Colony in Ludhiana,” said Kalyan.
A cousin of the deceased said that “the opposite group were bullying Sansi community boys in the colony for months”. “Whenever someone from our side would roam in the street, they would abuse or slap us. They used to harass Savan and his brother too,” he said.
Rajvir, the brother-in-law of the victim on whose statement FIR has been registered, said that a few days ago, Savan’s father had approached the parents of one of the accused to discuss the matter and suggested that “children on both sides should be counselled.”
The incident prompted district Civil Surgeon Dr SP Singh to write to police, administration and state health director, demanding 24×7 security for doctors and staff on duty especially at night. “How is it possible that despite having a police post within the premises police failed to stop such an incident? We have been told that cops posted at the hospital chowki are mostly missing from duty. Such a chaos was created inside the ward that doctors were not even in the situation to treat that injured boy and he had to be rushed to CMCH. They have now deputed a PCR vehicle outside the emergency ward but hospitals cannot be allowed to become crime spots,” Singh said.
Dr Rohit Rampal, district vice president of Punjab Civil Medical Services (PCMS) Association who wrote to civil surgeon demanding adequate security, said that the accused were weilding swords and the doctors and staff ran and hid to save themselves. “How can we expect doctors to give their 100 per cent if we can’t ensure their safety,” he asked.
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