Friction in Kurukshetra: Nurses strike back after Women's Commission chief’s ‘collusion’ remarks

Nursing staff at a Kurukshetra civil hospital have staged a two-hour pen-down protest, demanding an apology from the Haryana State Commission for Women chairperson over allegations of negligence.

The corridors of Lok Nayak Jai Parkash Civil Hospital in Kurukshetra turned into a site of defiance this Monday as the hospital’s nursing staff laid down their pens in protest. The strike, which lasted two hours, was sparked by a visit from Renu Bhatia, the chairperson of the Haryana State Commission for Women. Bhatia had arrived to probe a distressing sexual assault case involving a 62-year-old consultant doctor and a 15-year-old patient, but the fallout of her visit has now turned the spotlight onto the administration’s handling of hospital staff.

According to the nurses, the commission chairperson’s visit descended into a blame game. While the state body is tasked with ensuring safety, protestors claim Bhatia openly accused the nursing staff of negligence and even suggested that some members might have colluded in the crime. "We work tirelessly, often managing 70 to 80 patients single-handedly," said Senior Nursing Officer Gurmeet Kaur. The staff argued that they were not present during the incident, noting that the accused doctor had never summoned a nurse for the examination as per standard medical protocol.

The protest reflects a deep-seated frustration among the nursing workforce, who feel they are the first to be scapegoated when institutional failures occur. The nursing staff maintained that they were simply following their duty rosters, and they vehemently rejected the claims of collusion. By the end of the morning, a memorandum demanding a formal apology for the "unfounded" remarks was submitted to the Civil Surgeon, Dr. Sukhbir Singh.

Why it matters

This incident highlights the precarious relationship between oversight bodies and frontline healthcare workers in Haryana. While the State Commission for Women is rightfully aggressive in pursuing accountability for sexual assault cases, the friction in Kurukshetra suggests that an adversarial approach toward medical staff—without a completed, impartial investigation—can backfire. When authorities conflate systemic administrative negligence with the conduct of individual nurses, it risks demoralizing a workforce that is already stretched to its limit. Moving forward, the challenge for both the hospital administration and the commission will be to ensure justice for the victim without alienating the very staff required to maintain patient safety.

Following the protest, the hospital’s Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Sukhbir Singh, alongside Principal Medical Officer Dr. Sarah Agrawal, met with the staff. They have assured the nurses that their grievances will be formally conveyed to the commission, though tension remains high on the hospital floor as the investigation into the doctor’s conduct continues.