The veil shielding the conduct of doctors, nurses, and staff at Goa’s premier medical institution — Goa Medical College (GMC) — has been ruthlessly torn down. And ironically, the man who pulled it down, Health Minister Vishwajit Rane, exposed his own authoritarian underbelly in the same breath.
In an appalling public spectacle, Rane demanded the immediate suspension of Dr. Rudresh Kuttikar, Chief Medical Officer of the casualty block throwing the rule book out of the window. But it wasn’t just the demand — it was the crude, aggressive language Rane used that laid bare the rot at the top: “Get out,” “Shut up,” “Kick him out of here,” “Go home.” This wasn’t a minister reprimanding a subordinate — it was a man drunk on power, playing to the cameras in a staged display of might.
If the Health Minister hoped to shine light on the dysfunctional state of GMC, he also managed to shine a spotlight on his own abrasive, undemocratic methods.
The incident was sparked by a journalist who, on being turned away from a closed Urban Health Centre, took his elderly parents to the GMC casualty ward for an injection, upon a senior medic’s advice. Dr. Rudresh, however, refused to administer the shot. The senior medic intervened again, asked the ward staff to proceed, and the injections were finally given.
But that wasn’t the end.
The journalist, understandably disturbed, escalated the issue to none other than the Health Minister. What followed was an orchestrated descent into chaos — Rane stormed into GMC with a convoy of media personnel, unleashed a tirade on Dr. Kuttikar, and ordered his removal in front of staff, patients, and cameras.
Let’s be clear: neither party came out looking good. Dr. Rudresh's behavior was inhumane and unacceptable. But Rane’s response — public humiliation, profanity, and a total disregard for procedural decorum — was equally reprehensible.
Two wrongs never make a right, and in this case, they exposed a systemic failure.
The buck, as always, stops somewhere — and this time, it stops squarely at the feet of Vishwajit Rane. This is not a one-off incident. It is a damning indictment of the culture he has cultivated over the 13 years he’s helmed the health ministry — first under Congress (2007–2012), and then BJP (2017–2025). If GMC doctors and staff reek of arrogance and apathy, it’s because the rot starts at the top.
The minister had a golden opportunity — in that very moment — to lead by example. To urge his medical staff to show humility, to reinforce compassion and humanity. Instead, he chose to perform. And in doing so, revealed that he too lacks the very qualities he sought to demand.
Sure, Rane may have modernized facilities at GMC. But what use are next-gen machines if a patient has to beg for a basic injection? What does it say about our healthcare system if the elderly must wait on personal influence and phone calls to receive routine care?
This time, it was a journalist — someone with access to power. But what about the common man? The daily wage earner? The migrant worker? If this is how the system treats the informed, what hope does the voiceless have?
The legendary arrogance of GMC’s staff isn’t new. But Rane’s display only reinforced the culture. A health minister cannot lead by screaming, nor can he fire people like he’s running a personal estate. Goa Medical College is not your paichem bhens — your father’s land — Mr. Rane. It is a public institution governed by law, not by the whims of an entitled minister on a power trip.
And if this is how he rules a ministry, God help Goa if he ever rules the state.
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