Srinagar, Nov 25 (KDC): A government order issued by Sher-i-Kashmir Institute of Medical Sciences (SKIMS) Soura designating officials to facilitate “hassle-free treatment” for patients referred from the offices of the Lieutenant Governor, Chief Minister and Chief Secretary has triggered political reaction, with People’s Conference chairman and MLA Sajad Lone terming the circular “a new low” and an “affront to medical science.”
The office order, dated 21 November 2025, directs Dr Fayaz Ahmad Bhat, Assistant Professor, Department of General Medicine, to assist patients referred by top offices of Jammu and Kashmir. It further assigns Dr Qazi Mudasir Javeid, Veterinary Assistant Surgeon (Skill Development Centre/Vet Lab SKIMS), to assist Dr Fayaz in facilitating such cases.
Reacting sharply on social media, Lone said the order effectively creates a VIP treatment mechanism within J&K’s premier tertiary care hospital, undermining the principle of equal access to healthcare. “If this order has actually been issued, this represents a new low,” he said, adding that prioritising VIP-referred patients over those needing urgent medical attention on clinical grounds “humiliates the science of medicine and the noble profession.”
Lone questioned the logic of involving a veterinary assistant surgeon in facilitating human patients. “The veterinary assistant named in this order — who is he supposed to treat amongst the patients referred by the VIPs?” he asked.
Calling upon the SKIMS administration to immediately revoke the directive, Lone urged the Director SKIMS to “stop humiliating the science of medicine” and withdraw what he described as an order that compromises the ethos of public healthcare.
SKIMS has not yet issued any clarification regarding the purpose or intended scope of the order. (KDC)
