PATNA, Aug. 2 -- Resident doctors of Patna's All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) went on an indefinite strike on Friday, affecting patient care and hospital services, following an incident of alleged misbehaviour, intimidation and assault, involving Chetan Anand, RJD MLA from Sheohar, his wife Dr Ayushi Singh, and their security guards late on Wednesday evening. In a late-night statement issued at 9:08 pm on Friday, the AIIMS administration termed the incident "unwarranted" and said a fact-finding committee had been constituted to ensure appropriate action. However, it did not specify when the committee would submit its report. Nearly 500 resident doctors or students pursuing their masters or super-specialty degrees, after completing their MBBS, shut down OPD (outpatient department) and emergency services, including elective surgeries. The striking doctors, however, claimed that senior doctors and medical faculty members were continuing with emergency services. Patient care services, however, took a hit as junior doctors abstained from duty, gathering in front of the OPD building, and taking out a procession on the campus of the institute, demanding justice and safety of doctors at the workplace and action against the lawmaker. At 2,000, AIIMS recorded only half its average daily OPD patient footfall on Friday. New patient admission dipped to 43% its average daily admission of 200. The worst affected was the trauma and emergency, where only two admissions and four surgeries were recorded during the last 24 hours against an average 12 admissions a day. Barely one-third the average daily 90 elective surgeries were performed during the day, said doctors familiar with the matter. The Resident Doctors Association (RDA) of AIIMS Patna is demanding safety of doctors at workplace, removal of names of doctors mentioned in the FIR registered by the MLA, a formal written assurance and public condemnation of the incident by the AIIMS administration and implementation of concrete and lasting security protocols to safeguard healthcare professionals on duty. The trouble began late on Wednesday night (July 30), around 11.00 pm, when Anand, his wife Dr Ayushi Singh, a gynaecologist, and their armed security personnel reportedly forced their way into the trauma centre of AIIMS Patna to see an acquaintance, causing panic among staff and patients. Doctors alleged that the MLAs supporters and guards brandished weapons and assaulted a security personnel of AIIMS who tried to stop them from entering the trauma and emergency ward with weapons. A hospital security guard was reportedly injured after being struck with the butt of a pistol. Resident doctors said that they were subjected to threats, abuse, and fear inside their own workplace. The intrusion escalated into a conflict when the MLA and his wife, unhappy with the treatment protocol, allegedly misbehaved with the doctors, leaving multiple staff members shaken and a security guard injured. The agitating doctors alleged that the lawmaker's wife even passed treatment instructions to the resident doctors, which hurt their ego. "How can a gynaecologist pass instructions to orthopaedicians, treating a bone fracture?" wondered the doctors. The MLA and his wife had filed a police complaint at the Phulwarisharif police station. What further ticked off the resident doctors was the alleged recalcitrant attitude of the AIIMS administration to take action in the case. Despite the severity of the assault, the RDA highlighted that no FIR has been filed, and the administration has taken no decisive legal or institutional action to protect its staff or pursue justice. This perceived inaction, the doctors said, has created "a climate of fear and helplessness among doctors and healthcare workers." "We wanted the AIIMS administration to file a police complaint against the MLA, his wife and his supporters. It was only after we intensified our protest and struck work on Friday that the AIIMS administration finally lodged the FIR," said an aggrieved doctor, requesting anonymity. City SP Bhanu Pratap Singh confirmed FIRs have been lodged on both sides and police investigations are underway. The RDA cautioned the AIIMS administration that unless its demands were met promptly, emergency services may be completely withdrawn. The AIIMS Patna administration has not issued a public statement yet, even as senior police officials and state health authorities reportedly are trying to de-escalate the situation behind the scenes. HT's efforts to contact AIIMS Patna executive director Dr Saurabh Varshney and medical superintendent Dr Anup Kumar, proved futile, as they did not respond to text messages or emails sent at around 1.05pm on Monday, till the filing of this report at 6.30pm. Anand, the son of former MP Anand Mohan, was also not available for comments, as he did not respond to this reporter's phone call....