Patient treated outside at Modi eye hospital as kin fights for property

BENGALURU: The employees of the Dr M C Modi Eye Hospital in Rajajinagar were forced to treat patients outside the hospital on Wednesday as a family member of the late Padma Bhushan awardee and the trust managing the hospital are engaged in a property dispute. The hospital staff had even staged a protest demanding that the hospital be opened.

The hospital was started by Dr M C Modi to serve the public. After the death of his son, a trust was started to run the hospital. Subash Modi, a member of the family, recently broke the lock of the hospital at night and allegedly took away important documents and money. He also tried to prevent the employees from working. He claimed that the hospital belongs to him as it is an inherited property.

Patients were treated outside on the Dr MC Modi eye hospital premises.

The hospital has been closed and patients are stranded without receiving proper treatment. Many paramedical students who work as trainees say their documents are stuck inside the hospital. The students have their exams on December 12 and are worried that they may need their documents.

Amaranath, a patient.

“I had an eye operation two years ago, and I came for a check-up. After coming here, I got to know that the hospital is locked and employees are on protest. They asked me to come after some days”, said Amaranath, a patient, said on Wednesday.

Nagaratna, hospital staff, MC Modi Eye Hospital

“We finished work last Thursday evening and went home. The next day, the gates weren’t opened till evening and we didn’t know the reason. The following day, the locks on the gate had been changed. We filed a complaint at the Mahalakshmi Layout police station. Patients who have undergone surgery need to be checked. Paramedical students have exams and everyone is facing problems. The hospital management and Subash Modi are embroiled in a dispute over the property. This is government property because it is a public trust”, said Nagaratna, a staffer at the M C Modi Eye Hospital.