A dispute between Saifee Hospital in Mumbai and one of its resident doctors has reached the Bombay High Court, with the hospital seeking Rs 125 crore in damages over social media posts that it claims harmed its reputation.
The case has been filed by the Saifee Hospital Trust against Dr Asiya Khan Luqman, a first-year DNB General Surgery trainee. The hospital has alleged that the doctor made serious accusations against the institution and some of its senior doctors through social media. The posts were also directed at or tagged relevant police authorities, including the Mumbai Police. The hospital has claimed that disagreements subsequently arose over her attendance, leave and conduct during her training. Her legal team has argued that a resident doctor has the right to raise concerns about working conditions and seek intervention from appropriate authorities. They have maintained that approaching regulatory bodies or speaking about alleged workplace issues should not automatically be treated as an attempt to defame the hospital.
Dr Luqman joined Saifee Hospital as a DNB General Surgery trainee in February 2026.
The posts contained allegations relating to long working hours, ragging, mental harassment and alleged mistreatment of resident doctors, according to the hospital’s case.
The matter came before Justice Arif Doctor of the Bombay High Court. During the proceedings, the court directed the trainee not to publish further allegedly defamatory material concerning the hospital on social media while the case is pending.
