Berhampur: Six youths have threatened Swastik Acharya, a doctor working in the Ganjam Community Health Centre, after they brought a patient for admission at the medical facility.

They were angry when the doctor, who was in the labour room attending to another patient, came late on Wednesday night.

"The youths, who came in a Maruti van, scolded and threatened the doctor, demanding immediate treatment of their patient. When the doctor came out of the labour room, the youths told him that they were BJD workers, and their patient must be treated on priority basis," said a health centre employee, requesting anonymity.

When other patients, attendants and local people gathered there to protest and called police, the youths left the place with their patient, he said.

Dr Acharya, however, said that as he was attending to another patient in the labour room, he could not immediately come to attend to the patient whom the youths had brought. "I have done nothing wrong," he said. The hospital employees staged a dharna on the road in front of the main gate of the health centre, protesting against the incident.

In a similar incident, Dr Sudarshan Sahu was beaten up in Khallikote Community Health Centre by a patient's relatives after they got angry with him as the medico referred the patient, awaiting delivery, to MKCG Medical College and Hospital on August 27 last. Protesting against the attack, the hospital employees had gone on a strike. Later, the police detained three persons in this connection.

Dr Sahu had said the patient's relatives, who were intoxicated, asked him why he did not do her delivery at the health centre. When he tried to convince them that it would take time, they caught hold of his neck and beat him up black and blue.

The relatives of other patients turned up at the right moment and rescued the doctor. The trouble-mongers then fled the spot.