YDA-BBH wing boycotts duties, blocks Murree Road for two hours

Protesters demand Punjab govt reinstate suspended MS of hospital, remove Punjab law minister

RAWALPINDI: As a deadline, set by doctors and paramedical staff of the Benazir Bhutto Hospital (BBH) to restore its suspended medical superintendent, expired on Monday, staffers along with local PTI supporters marched onto Murree Road and blocked it in protest.

Due to the protest, traffic remained suspended on the key artery for at least two hours on Monday afternoon.



Last week, the Punjab government had suspended Dr Tariq Niazi, the medical superintendent (MS) of Benazir Bhutto General Hospital (BBH). The suspension came over a month after an audio clip had leaked online in which Punjab Law Minister Raja Basharat could be heard speaking rudely with Dr Niazi for failing to transfer the daughter — who works at BBH — of incarcerated Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader Hanif Abbasi to a specific department.

After his suspension, representatives of the Young Doctors Association (YDA) in Rawalpindi had protested the decision, terming it political interference in the affairs of the hospital.

The doctors and other staff of BBH had demanded that Dr Niazi should be reinstated while Basharat should be removed as a minister. Rejecting verbal assurances provided by Punjab minister, they had given the Punjab government until noon on Monday to issue written notifications for these moves.

After their deadline expired on Monday, YDA and paramedical staff in all departments boycotted their duties and marched out of the hospital. They blocked the Murree Road in protest and raised slogans against the Punjab law minister.

They also held up placards and banners inscribed with slogans demanding the reinstatement of Dr Niazi.

They were soon joined by some local, flag-bearing Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party workers.

The protesting doctors accused Basharat of political interference in the affairs of the hospital and levelling false accusations against Dr Niazi to have him suspended. They added that the Punjab government spokesperson had given them verbal assurances that Dr Niazi will be reinstated but the government has yet to issue a written notification in this regard. The protesters vowed to continue their protest until Dr Niazi is restored and political interference in hospital ends.

Meanwhile, patients at BBH had to suffer owing to the short strike by the doctors and paramedical staff.



Further, due to the blockade of Muree Road, a massive logjam was witnessed on Rawalpindi’s roads. Apart from Murree road, which saw a queue of cars stretch for miles, all link roads were also jammed.

The blocked roads include Rawal Road, Asghar Mall Road, Chandni Chowk and Sadiqabad Road. A large number of officers were deployed by the Rawalpindi Traffic Police to control the situation, but they appeared helpless.

The police also did not try to engage or disperse the protesting doctors. But after two hours, the protesters dispersed on their own. 

Published in The Express Tribune, February 12^th, 2019.