Retired Supreme Court judge Markandey Katju on Wednesday issued a clarification on his earlier Facebook post where he had said that if Bihar government hospital doctors refused to work due to lack of personal protective equipment (PPE) to avoid coronavirus infection, what will happen to their Hippocratic Oath.
Taking to Facebook, Markandey Katju wrote, "Many people have criticised me for my previous FB post. So let me clarify. I never said that the demand of doctors for PPE (personal protective equipment) in view of the coronavirus danger is unjustified."
"My question is: should doctors refuse to treat patients with infectious diseases until provided PPE ? There are numerous infectious diseases in the world. Should doctors refuse to treat patients infected by them until given PPE for fear that they may themselves be infected ? In my opinion the correct answer can only be in the negative," he further added.
The retired Supreme Court judge also said that hospitals should provide PPE to doctors. "It is true that the authorities should provide PPE to doctors. But what if they don’t? Should doctors violate their Hippocratic Oath in this situation and refuse to treat infected patients?" he wrote.
Markandey Katju also said that doctors are endangering themselves, but they should follow the message of Lord Krishna in the Gita and do their duty regardless of the consequences.
On Wednesday, Markandey Katju had written a Facebook post in which he said that many doctors in government hospitals in Bihar have refused to work in their hospitals unless they are provided with personal protective equipment to avoid corona virus infection.
He further wrote that there are many infectious diseases, but if doctors ignore their sacred duty of treating the sick just because they themselves may get infected, what will happen to their Hippocratic oath.
Earlier on March 17, Markandey Katju slammed former Chief Justice of India (CJI) Ranjan Gogoi for his Rajya Sabha nomination.
Katju on Twitter lashed out at Gogoi by calling him a 'sexual pervert'. He wrote, "I have been a lawyer for 20 years and a judge for another 20. I have known many good judges and many bad judges. But I have never known any judge in the Indian judiciary as shameless and disgraceful as this sexual pervert Ranjan Gogoi. There was hardly any vice which was not in this man."
