ISLAMABAD, Nov 4: The medical staff of the Federal Government Services Hospital on Tuesday observed a two hours’ token strike against delay in arrest of accused involved in assaulting two of their colleagues on Saturday.

Hundreds of patients visiting the hospital’s over 30 outpatient departments faced inconvenience during the strike. Dr Riffat Pasha and Dr Ali were thrashed by the family members of a National Assembly deputy secretary and their accomplices at the hospital on Saturday evening.

The protesters alleged that the police were protecting the accused and were reluctant to take legal action against them.

A doctors’ action committee was also formed to build pressure on the police to take action against the accused and mobilise other doctors of the twin cities to join the protest.

The doctors and paramedical staff from different wards of the hospital excluding emergency, ICU and CCU, stopped working at 10am.

Later, about 300 protesters chanting slogans and holding banners and placards inscribed with demands for action against the accused marched towards the press club camp office. They stayed outside the press club till 12 noon and returned to the hospital to rejoin their duties.

The protesters said they would also observe a token strike and hold a protest rally on Wednesday (today) from 10am to 12 noon if the accused were not put behind bars.

They said efforts were also under way to convince the doctors of Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences, Capital Development Authority; Holy Family Hospital, District Headquarters Hospital and Benazir Bhutto Hospital Rawalpindi to observe a token strike in their respective hospitals on Wednesday.

The doctors of the FGSH and HFH had also staged a protest demonstration on Monday, alleging that the police were not registering the case.

However, the police said they needed a complaint for registering the case which was not lodged till Monday noon.

The delay took place because the hospital management was reluctant to register a complaint against the influential accused. On the other hand, the doctors’ action committee claimed that the delay had occurred as the medico-legal report was awaited.

The committee announced that the doctors would march towards D. Chowk to stage a protest demonstration and go on a complete strike if the accused were not arrested by Wednesday.

Sources said the accused were trying to get bail from the court of law as all the sections under which they have been booked are bailable.

The sources said the matter was badly handled by the hospital administration, as first they tried to reach a compromise on the matter and then lodged the complaint due to internal grouping and politics.