*TRIGGER WARNING: Violent language, mention of murder
While the recent stabbing of a Chennai doctor by a cancer patient’s son shook the city, many netizens have flooded social media with brutal death threats to the victim and medical professionals in general. From posts on X to the comments sections of news videos, the stabbing is now being used as an excuse to make horrific statements like, “doctors who don’t administer the correct treatment should be doused in petrol and burnt to death.” News interviews with the perpetrator’s ill mother on her sick bed and online outrage have also presented the accused as a heroic figure who did “only what any man who loves his mother would do.”
On November 13, the son of a woman cancer patient, stabbed her oncologist Dr Balaji Jaganathan at the Kalaignar Centenary Super Speciality Hospital at least six times. The man, identified as Vignesh, was convinced that his mother had not received adequate medical attention and armed with a knife, went to the hospital, where he posed as a patient to attack the doctor. Dr Balaji is stable now and recovering.
Vignesh’s mother has alleged that Dr Balaji had been rude, verbally abusive and inattentive to her needs during multiple consultations, adding that it had led to her condition worsening and the cancer spreading to her lungs.
“If the doctor hadn’t failed in his duty, I would not be this ill,” she said in a press meet, adding, “I don’t know what occurred to my son out of his love for me. He went down the wrong road.” In another interview to the Tamil YouTube channel RedPix 24x7, she said that her condition is terminal. According to what the family and advocate have told mediapersons, Vignesh himself suffers from multiple health conditions including epilepsy and needs medical care.
‘Let this be a warning’
Many social media users, without condoning or celebrating the incident, have expressed empathy for Vignesh and his mother’s mental health conditions, the trauma of a disease like cancer and its treatment procedures, and the family’s low-income background. Pointing out that it is often people with little access to health care who depend on public hospitals, they have urged the state government to offer medical aid to the family.
But others appear to be using this tragedy for issuing violent death threats. “That dog has not died even after being stabbed,” says one comment. “Doctors who don’t administer the correct treatment should be doused in petrol and burnt to death,” declares one more. “The stabbing was super”, says another, adding laughing emojis.
Yet another anonymous comment in Tamil reads: “Doctors should be good. This happened because of their apathy so … let this be a warning.” Under a video of Dr Balaji’s press meet, one commenter says, “If you had done your job properly, would you be in this mess?” And one more: “All of this is your [Dr Balaji’s] karma.” Also, “you deserve this punishment”; “haven’t you died yet”; “I pray that god takes your life”; “I wonder how many more doctors are going to be stabbed like this”; “An example to a few irresponsible doctors” and “Give him poison, let him die”. There are a multitude of statements like these.
The comments are also rife with misogynistic projections of the ‘ideal’ son who defends his mother’s ‘honour’. One such comment says, “The doctor’s rude behaviour is responsible for this incident. Does any self respecting person tolerate when his mother is insulted in front of him?” Another similarly claims, “He [Vignesh] did this out of true love for his mother. It is sad to see him considered a criminal.”
Dr Antan Uresh Kumar T, Chennai district secretary of the Democratic Tamil Nadu Government Doctors Association (DTNGDA), said it is movies that encourage young people to engage in such violence. “I agree that is wrong if any doctor had passed negative comments. But films have created a mindset that it is okay to assault or try to kill someone if you’re angry.”
More worryingly, he added, “Whatever may happen on social media, who is going to be impacted by this ultimately? It’s the public who will not be able to access services. I do not have the mental frame of mind to undertake surgery. I need to be calm for that. Several of my colleagues have shared similar sentiments since the attack. Not just doctors in government hospitals, even those in private practice or working with big corporate hospitals have told me that they are scared and reluctant to undertake surgery.”
Speaking to TNM, Dr Saminathan, president, Service Doctors and Post Graduates Association (SDPGA) echoed Dr Antan’s sentiments. He warned that such fear-mongering will only lead to people losing faith in public health care and turning to expensive private hospitals. “Doctors, out of fear, may become more conservative in their treatments and refer patients to other hospitals, rather than get involved in risky medical procedures.”
Referring to his own practice as a paediatrician, Dr Saminithan said, “If a child with fever is brought to me, I must prescribe medication. This medication takes a few hours to take effect. But if I am reluctant to prescribe the medication, out of fear of risk-taking, the child’s life may be in danger because the fever can lead to a febrile seizure.” Febrile seizures, according to the UK’s National Health Services (NHS), can sometimes happen when a child has a high temperature. Symptoms may include becoming stiff, shaking and twitching, jerky movements and even loss of consciousness.