Meerut: The Meerut police have filed a case against Valentis Cancer Hospital, after a controversial advertisement by the hospital in a Hindi daily on Friday.
A case has been registered against the hospital at Lisadi Gate Police station as per a tweet from the official Twitter handle of Meerut police. The details of the sections under the Indian Penal Code(IPC) which were imposed are however, still awaited.
The controversial advertisement by the hospital in Meerut said that Muslim patients and their caretakers coming to the hospital must test negative for Covid-19, failing which they won't be admitted to the hospital. The authorities have also asked Muslims to carry their coronavirus test reports as proof.
The discriminatory advertisement, published in the Hindi daily Dainik Jagran, has drawn severe criticism from all quarters. The hospital is a 50-bed facility under the Incholi police station and has been catering to cancer patients from Western parts of Uttar Pradesh.
In the advertisement, the hospital blamed people related to the Tablighi Jamaat for spreading coronavirus in the country. It also accused those related to the Jamaat of misbehaviour with the medical staff.
Interestingly, the hospital has also stated in the advertisement that if any Muslim comes with an emergency case then they will have to shell out Rs 4500 per person for the compulsory Covid-19 test. However, the hospital said the rule will not apply for Muslim doctors and paramedic staff.
Apart from calling out Muslims, the hospital had also called out some Hindus/Jain families as ‘Kanjoos’ (misers) in the advertisement and asked them to come forward and donate to PM Cares Fund.
Interestingly, a day later, a clarification was issued in the Hindi daily wherein the hospital tendered an apology to the Jain community for unintentionally 'hurting their sentiments'.
No clarification, however, was tendered to the Muslim community separately.
In the same clarification, the hospital, however appealed people from all religions (Hindu, Muslim, Jain, Sikh, Christians) to come together to fight against the spread of the novel coronavirus. The hospital, in the last line of the advertisement, apologised to people from all religions for hurting their sentiments.
Meanwhile the Chief Medical Officer of Meerut Raj Kumar has said that action might be taken against the hospital and their licence might be revoked if they don’t tender a public apology.
“The discrimination made on religious basis is a violation of medical ethics. A notice will be issued to the hospital and they will have to tender a public apology. In case they don’t do so their license might be suspended for discrimination on religious basis.”
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