A resident doctor at Indira Gandhi Medical College in Shimla was suspended this week after a widely shared video showed him punching a patient lying on a hospital bed during a dispute in a pulmonary ward, prompting protests outside the campus and a state-ordered inquiry, officials said.
The clip, recorded on a mobile phone and posted online, spread quickly across India and abroad in the days before Christmas. Hospital administrators said the incident occurred early in the week and involved one patient and one physician inside a general ward at the government-run teaching hospital. The Himachal Pradesh government said a committee is investigating what happened, while local police opened a case based on a complaint from the patient. The episode has sparked a debate about conduct and accountability in public hospitals, even as investigators collect statements and secure additional footage from the ward.
People familiar with the matter identified the doctor as Dr. Raghav Narula, a senior resident, and the patient as 36-year-old schoolteacher Arjun Panwar, who had recently undergone a bronchoscopy and was admitted for breathing problems. In the video, a man in hospital scrubs steps to the side of a bed and throws several punches as staff rush in to separate the two. “He kept hitting me even as I struggled to breathe,” Panwar said in a statement to police, according to relatives. Outside the hospital, friends of the patient gathered to demand the doctor’s arrest. By midweek, the hospital said Narula had been relieved of ward duties and directed to report to the medical education directorate while the inquiry proceeds.
Hospital leaders said the ward was secured soon after the confrontation and that the patient was examined by another team. Administrators did not report life-threatening injuries linked to the assault, and no other patients were harmed, they said. Police officers took initial statements from nurses and attendants and began reviewing the short video clips posted online to locate the time and place of the incident. The college’s medical superintendent confirmed the suspension and said a fact-finding panel would interview those on shift that day. The Himachal Pradesh chief minister requested a written report with timelines and recommendations after the footage drew criticism from across the political spectrum.
Authorities said the confrontation stemmed from an argument over respectful language. Relatives said Panwar objected when the doctor addressed him with “tu,” an informal word that can be taken as disrespectful in parts of northern India. What happened next is still under review. Investigators said they will examine staff logs, duty rosters and call records, and request any internal camera footage if available. It remained unknown whether additional video exists from before the first punches. Narula has denied wrongdoing in comments shared through associates, saying the clip does not capture the full exchange and that he intends to present his account to police and hospital officials.
IGMC is Himachal Pradesh’s largest tertiary-care teaching hospital and a referral center for the region. The complex, known for its medical and nursing colleges and specialty wards, has faced crowding and staff shortages during winter respiratory surges. Health workers and patient advocates said tempers can escalate when beds are scarce and relatives crowd halls, but insisted that physical violence by clinical staff violates basic standards. Professional councils in India have codes of ethics that require dignified conduct toward patients, and state-run hospitals often post rules in wards reminding staff and visitors of expected behavior. The Shimla incident has revived calls for better de-escalation training and staffing support on high-pressure shifts.
Police said a case was registered based on the patient’s complaint. Officers plan to take formal statements from the doctor, the patient, nursing staff and attendants, and to reconstruct the minutes before the punches seen on camera. The three-member inquiry set up by the state was asked to submit preliminary findings by Dec. 24, according to officials familiar with the order. Administrators said the doctor will remain off clinical duty pending the outcome. No court dates had been announced as of Monday, and it was not immediately clear whether any criminal charges would be filed beyond the initial case registration.
Witnesses described a brief scramble in the ward as voices rose and a tray clattered to the floor. A junior nurse ushered visitors out while a guard stepped between the men, according to an attendant who said he filmed part of the scene. Outside in the winter air, supporters of the patient held handwritten signs near the hospital gate. “We want fair action,” said neighbor Balbir Verma, who joined the group after seeing the video online. Inside, a row of patients watched from their beds as staff returned to rounds and a supervisor checked charts along the aisle.
As of late Monday, the patient remained under observation and the doctor stayed suspended from ward duties while the state committee and police continued their parallel reviews. Officials said they would release a summary of preliminary findings after interviews and documentation are complete.
Author note: Last updated December 29, 2025.