Thane: A Shiv Sena corporator and his associates allegedly assaulted two doctors at a civic-run hospital in Maharashtra’s Thane district after a family was advised to transfer a newborn baby to another medical facility, police confirmed on Wednesday.

The confrontation occurred on Monday evening at the Shastri Nagar Hospital, operated by the Kalyan Dombivli Municipal Corporation (KDMC). The incident was captured on video, which subsequently circulated widely on social media, appearing to show the local politician striking medical personnel.

A formal case was registered on Tuesday night against the Sena corporator, Ramesh Sukrya Mhatre, and five others, following severe public backlash and immense pressure from the Indian Medical Association (IMA). The medical body had threatened to suspend operations at private clinics and hospitals across the area if authorities failed to act.

According to police officials, Doctors Srishti Bawiskar and Vaibhav Salunkhe had advised the relatives of a newborn to transfer the infant to a different hospital due to a lack of available space in their facility’s Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). Aggrieved by the recommendation, the relatives contacted Mhatre. The corporator subsequently arrived at the hospital, where he allegedly subjected the doctors to verbal abuse and physical violence, leaving Dr Salunkhe with injuries.

Dr Deepa Shukla, the KDMC Medical Health Officer, alongside hospital staff, approached the police late on Monday night, though a formal case was not immediately lodged. Following the online circulation of the assault footage on Tuesday afternoon, public and medical organisations heavily criticised the ruling Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena, accusing it of shielding the local politician.

In protest against the violence, hospital staff staged a "work-stop" strike on Tuesday to demand the immediate arrest of Mhatre and his accomplices. Representatives from the IMA's Kalyan and Dombivli chapters, along with leaders of the civic workers' union, met with KDMC Commissioner Abhinav Goyal to press their demands. The IMA warned that all private medical facilities in the region would close on Wednesday if a First Information Report (FIR) was not registered alongside swift arrests.

Police subsequently booked the corporator, four male supporters, and one woman under several sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. These include sections 132 (assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty), 121(1) (voluntarily causing hurt), 351(1) (criminal intimidation), 352 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of peace), 189(2) (unlawful assembly), and 191(2) (rioting).

Assistant Commissioner of Police Suhas Nemade informed reporters that an active investigation is under way, though no arrests have been made so far.

With inputs from PTI