India, July 17 -- The Supreme Court has strongly criticised a doctor for allegedly failing to provide immediate medical treatment to a four-year-old sexual assault survivor, calling the conduct "merciless, ruthless and insensitive." The court made the observations while hearing a case related to the medical response and investigation into the assault of the child in Gurugram.

A Bench expressed serious concern over the delay in treating the child, stressing that medical professionals have a legal and ethical duty to provide urgent care to survivors of sexual violence without waiting for procedural formalities. The judges observed that timely medical intervention is crucial in such cases and said any failure to do so could have severe cons...