Chief of Sahara News Bureau, Jaipur and the crusader of the sting operation "Kokh Mein Qatl", Shripal Shaktawat recorded the guilty doctors who have been engaged in female foeticide for a long time.
Screening of recorded show started from April 04, 2006 when a culprit, a Jaipur doctor manhandled Shripal and his colleague Dr. Meena Sharma, who has been actively associated for past one year with this project and whose contribution through her bold participation helped make this initiative one of the leading sting operations in the country. Dr. Rekha Gupta of 'Deep Nursing Home' emerged as a speed breaker and hampered the further telecasting of the sting operation "Kokh Mein Qatl".
Nevertheless, and despite many hurdles from various interested quarters the team of media activists engaged in the sting operation successfully managed to capture on camera around 140 doctors, among them 100 odd doctors seemed in great hurry to make money by abort girl child from mother's womb. The undercover operation was recorded in last one year covering 36 cities. The team members traveled a distance of 1,300 kms. in 4 states. The faces exposed so far are just the tip of an iceberg; many more are yet to be exposed.
But, financially and politically well connected medical practitioners, now in panic are working overtime to create all kinds of hurdles. It was sad and unfortunate that some unidentified criminals stormed the house of Shripal and threatened his wife and children with dire consequences on the night of April 19, 2006, if the channel continued to telecast its sting operation. So far, Sahara Samay has shown 35 doctors violating the PC/PNDT Act, MTP Act.
It is really surprisingly that after having shown the 35 guilty faces from 4 states, so far no concrete action under the provisions of existing laws of the country has been initiated by the state governments. Even while 21 doctors are from Rajasthan district health authorities have chosen to maintain an intriguing silence on this issue that has pricked the collective conscience of the entire nation. So far only 3 government doctors have been suspended and the health minister of Rajasthan Dr. Digambar Singh has announced seizure and cancellation of the license of the tainted doctors.
This however is not considered sufficient as these doctors have been known to have been engaged in clandestine operations for a very very long time, carrying out MTP's and sex determination tests. PC/PNDT Act and MTP Act advocates for imprisonment and penalty for the culprit doctors, but in this case, the appropriate authority that is CMHO's of the districts are not taking interest in filing complaints against the guilty doctors. The delayed action gave the tainted doctors time "to manage things". They concealed records including medical billing etc. as well as machines used for sex determination tests and conduct acts of foeticide. The activists are not satisfied with the arguments of government officials. The activists suspect the government had made an underhand deal with the tainted doctors.
The day, Sahara Samaya started unveiling the tainted faces of the so called 'God' on the earth, the state Home Minister Gulab Chand Kataria not only ordered police cops to find out the decoy who helped in sting operation but also said, "Hum kise ke saath anyaay nahi karenge. Nyaay ke liye zaroori hai ki un mahilaon ke jaanch ho ki who garbhwati hai bhi ki nahi." All this happened just because the doctor brother of a Superintendent of Police Vishal Bansal was present when the sting operation team members conducted an investigation of his clinic and center which was known to have been engaged in sex determination tests.
District and the state authorities have suo moto powers to take action against violators of PC/PNDT and MTP Acts, but the CMHOs and the Directorate of Family Welfare have been dragging their feet and hesitating to take any action till date.
No comments:
Post a Comment