New Delhi, Oct 1 The Delhi High Court has quashed an FIR against a man accused of assaulting a doctor at a city hospital after noting that the parties had amicably settled their dispute.
A single-judge Bench of Justice Ajay Digpaul directed the petitioner to perform community service every weekend at a hospital for one month under the supervision of the doctor he had allegedly assaulted.
The Delhi High Court was hearing a petition filed by Vipin Ahuja seeking the quashing of an FIR lodged in 2019 at Anand Vihar police station under Section 506 (criminal intimidation) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Section 4 of the Medicare Service Persons and Medicare Service Institutions (Prevention of Violence and Damage to Property) Act.
According to the FIR, the petitioner, who was an attendant of a patient, allegedly created a ruckus in the hospital on July 26, 2019, assaulted the doctor on duty, and disrupted hospital work with others.
During the hearing, the petitioner’s counsel submitted that the matter had been settled through a compromise deed dated January 8, 2025, and the complainant doctor had agreed not to pursue the case.
Both the petitioner and the doctor appeared before the Delhi Court, the former in person and the latter through video conferencing, and confirmed that the settlement was voluntary.
Noting that "no useful purpose would be served by continuation of the criminal proceedings", Justice Digpaul also observed that "an act of assault upon a medical professional in a hospital not only endangers the life of doctors and staff, but also jeopardises the treatment of other patients in need of urgent care".
Allowing the petition, the Delhi High Court quashed the FIR subject to the condition that the petitioner undertake community service at Dr Sushma Jindal Hospital, Dilshad Garden, every Saturday and Sunday for one month starting September 27.
The service is to be performed under the supervision of the complainant doctor. It directed that a completion certificate be issued by the hospital’s Medical Superintendent and filed with the Delhi HC registry.
"In the event of any absenteeism, default, or misconduct on the part of the petitioner during the course of the community service, the same be immediately reported by the Medical Superintendent to the concerned SHO, who shall, in turn, inform the APP for placing the matter before this court and seeking appropriate orders, including revival of the FIR," the order cautioned.
With the above directions, the Delhi High Court disposed of the petition, along with all pending applications.
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