Chandigarh, June 10: Haryana State Commission for Women Chairperson Renu Bhatia submitted her formal resignation to Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini on Tuesday, marking an abrupt conclusion to her four-and-a-half-year tenure at the helm of the regulatory body. The administrative move coincided with growing friction between the commission and public health workers over comments directed at nursing teams during a recent statutory inquiry.
The controversy arose following a direct confrontation between the panel chairperson and the medical staff at Kurukshetra’s primary civil hospital. The commission had traveled to the facility to evaluate administrative security protocols after a senior consultant was arrested for alleged misconduct involving a minor patient. During the inspection, the chairperson criticized local ward managers for failing to accompany the practitioner during patient interactions, a stance that drew sharp resistance from regional medical federations.
Organized health associations stated that the verbal reprimand unfairly compromised the dignity of healthcare professionals who operate under heavy daily patient loads. The All India Government Nurses Federation and allied laboratory groups subsequently organized joint sit-in protests, calling for structural accountability and a formal retraction of the statements.
“Such statements demoralise healthcare workers,” a representative from the Haryana Civil Medical Services Association affirmed during a solidarity demonstration. “The nursing staff members always performed their duties with utmost dedication and professionalism. It is wrong to blame nurses for incidents without proper investigation.”
While the ongoing protests disrupted routine morning registrations in several civic clinics, the state government quickly terminated the accused practitioner’s contract and initiated judicial proceedings. Amid these developments, the commission chief finalized her departure notice, stating textually, “I am currently resigning from this post. So, please accept my resignation.”
The departing official firmly rejected claims that public pressure or the ongoing health strikes influenced her administrative choice. She declared that her transition out of public office was necessitated by long-term family commitments outside the country that clashed with the operational schedule of the commission.
“I said nothing wrong,” the panel chief asserted while addressing the hospital dispute. “I have performed my duties with complete honesty for about four and a half years and have protected the interests of women.”
State distribution offices have acknowledged receipt of the correspondence but have not finalized the appointment of an interim successor. The state commission confirmed that its pending case files and regional protection reviews will continue under the supervision of the remaining board members until a new executive decision is finalized by the cabinet.
