Doctor who questioned about shortage of PPE kits and masks sent to Mental Hospital

Dr Sudhakar Rao, a resident of Visakhapatnam and an anaesthetist with 20years of experience became a national sensation when he raised concerns over shortage of PPE kits and masks. 

He is a government employee and he told the media that he was suspended because he dared to ask the questions regarding protection of the doctors. He further told the media that, “We are told to use the same mask for 15 days before asking for a fresh mask. How can we treat patients risking our lives?" An enquiry was set-up, but he was suspended. 

A series of videos became viral where Dr. Rao was seen sitting in his car shirtless and hurling abuses at the police. In another video, he is lying on the floor with his hands tied back and a police constable is beating him with a baton. The police authorities said that the constable was suspended who hit the Dr., however an inquiry is still pending. 

But, in the last video that went viral shows the police putting the shirtless Dr. Rao in an auto rickshaw and sending him to a mental hospital. While the incident took place, local journalists gathered on the site and Dr. told them, “They snatched my phone and wallet. They hit me.”

Since the day, Dr. Rao has raised his voice against shortage of masks, he has been threatened by various people on call. His mother, Kaveri Rao told BBC Telugu that, “He is a reputed doctor," she said. "But he has been facing abuse since the day he raised those concerns. I feel bad when people call me and ask about him. He has been very stressed for weeks."

However, police authorities have altogether a different story. According to RK Meena, the Police Commissioner, they were reported about a drunk man behaving erratically on Visakhapatnam highway. On reaching there, the constables recognised him as Dr. Rao.

 

According to the commissioner, Dr. Rao was throwing liquor bottle on the road and was trying to remove the barricades. The passersby restrained him to avoid further trouble. He further told BBC Telugu, “He behaved rudely with the police. He snatched the mobile phone from a constable and threw it away," MrMeena told reporters. "He is apparently suffering from psychological problems."

The hospital superintendent,Dr.Radha Rani further tol BBC Telugu that Dr. Radho Rao is doing fine, but will be admitted for two weeks for proper body check up and to ascertain his condition completely.