BALUNI DEI Vs. STATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS is a reference by the Sessions Judge of Cuttack, made under the foflowing circumstances.

(2.) ONE Baluni Dei filed a complaint before the Sub-divisional Magistrate, dhenkanal (Sadr), alleging that Shri Kiren Ghosh, Assistant Surgeon in charge of the Sadr Hospital at Dhenkanal, had assaulted her husband on 17-6-55 while he was a patient in the hospital, and has also abused him. It appears that her husband was an in-patient in the hospital in connection with some operation to his private parts. She alleged that the Assistant Surgeon slapped her husband, made some taunting remarks, and after taking him to the operation, theatre further assaulted him in consequence of which the patient screamed aloud, but the doctor roughly handled his testicles. The Sub-divisional Magistrate passed the following order on that complaint:

(3.) IN the order of reference the learned Sessions Judge has relied on a decision of the Patna High Court reported in Behari Rai v. The State AIR 1952 Pat 253 (A) and pointed out that the assault and abuse of a patient by the Medical Officer in charge of the hospital cannot be said to have been committed either in the discharge or purported discharge of his official duty and consequently no sanction of government would be necessary for his prosecution, as required in Section 197 (a)of the Criminal Procedure Code.