Protesting AIIMS nursing staff calls off strike after Delhi HC orders

The High Court, while conducting an emergency hearing on the petition of the AIIMS administration on Tuesday, had observed that the strike would cause grave prejudice and seriously impede the working of the institution.

New Delhi: The striking Nurses' Union at AIIMS called off the strike on Tuesday followed by Delhi High Court's directions to immediately end it and rejoin work. A bench headed by Justice Yashwant Verma had deferred the hearing on this matter to Wednesday. The AIIMS Nurses' Union had earlier announced an indefinite strike with effect from Tuesday morning on account of the suspension of its President Harish Kajla and demanded its revocation.

The High Court, while conducting an emergency hearing on the petition of the AIIMS administration on Tuesday, had observed that the strike would cause grave prejudice and seriously impede the working of the institution. The AIIMS administration informed that many important operations were postponed due to the strike by the nurses union, while the emergency services have also come to a standstill. Counsel for the petitioner informed the court that the nurses' union refused to attend to duty following a notice issued by the administration on April 25.

Since the aforesaid action of the union would cause grave prejudice and seriously impede and impact the working of a medical institution, the respondent union is directed to ensure that its members and nursing officers would immediately rejoin work forthwith pending further orders, the court had stated earlier.