The government-run Punjab Institute of Cardiology (PIC) has suffered a loss of Rs70 million, due to an attack on the hospital by a group of lawyers, reveal PIC officials.
Dr Saqib Shafiq, the chief executive of the PIC, told media sources, that the loss of Rs70 million includes damage to the main building, medical equipment and the doctors’ vehicles.
On Wednesday, a large group of lawyers rampaged the cardiology institute in Lahore. The protest quickly turned violent as patients and doctors fled, after lawyers used stones and bricks to smash windows and destroy hospital equipment in the emergency ward.
According to the police complaint, the men in black coats also snatched a patient’s oxygen mask and ripped out another patient’s IV drip.
Read More: #PICAttack – A day of horror, chaos and death in pictures
Two people, as a result, said Dr Shafiq, died in the emergency ward of the PIC, while three patients were rushed to other hospitals where they were later pronounced deceased.
On Friday, two days after the incident, consulting doctors are afraid to continue work at the Institute, Dr Shafiq added.
“On the day of the attack, former inspector general police Nasir Durrani’s mother had come to the hospital for a blood test,” the doctor said, “even her car was not spared by the lawyers.”
