Public outrage grows as hospital downplays link between pepper spray and heart attack

Indira Gandhi Memorial Hospital (IGMH) has been facing widespread public backlash after issuing a statement perceived as politically charged in response to a serious medical emergency following a police crackdown on peaceful protesters Friday night.

A protester, identified as Mohamed Raslaan, Vice President of the Maldivian Democratic Party’s (MDP) National Congress for the Central Hulhumalé constituency, suffered a heart attack after being exposed to pepper spray deployed by police during efforts to disperse demonstrators. Raslaan was hospitalized in critical condition and remains in the hospital's Coronary Care Unit (CCU), an intensive care unit reserved for patients with life-threatening cardiac conditions.

Rather than focusing on the urgency of the patient’s condition or the alarming circumstances under which it arose, IGMH issued a defensive statement late Saturday that appeared to downplay the incident. The hospital emphasized that heart attacks typically occur due to underlying health conditions, implying that the pepper spray exposure was not the direct cause of the medical emergency.

While the hospital acknowledged that pepper spray can trigger respiratory distress, coughing, and other stress-related symptoms, it insisted there is no medical basis to link the substance directly to cardiac arrest. The statement further stressed that various stressors, including physical exertion and emotional trauma, may only exacerbate pre-existing conditions.

Critics have slammed the hospital’s response as a thinly veiled attempt to absolve state forces of responsibility. Accusations are mounting that IGMH has aligned itself with the government’s narrative, effectively politicizing a patient’s medical crisis in an effort to deflect accountability from law enforcement.

What has particularly enraged the public is the perceived contradiction between the hospital's reassurances and Raslaan’s actual condition. While IGMH claims his condition has stabilized, family members contest this, stating he remains seriously ill.

The backlash has reignited broader concerns over the politicization of public institutions under President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu's administration. Many argue that even the country’s top referral hospital is no longer free from political interference, further eroding public trust in an already strained healthcare system. Social media is flooded with calls for accountability, including demands for the resignation of IGMH CEO Ibrahim Abdul Razzaq Haleem, as frustrations over declining service quality and alleged mismanagement intensify.

Public anger has also been fueled by past allegations of medical negligence at IGMH, cases where patients’ conditions reportedly worsened due to delayed or inadequate treatment, some of which resulted in preventable fatalities. While the hospital has remained silent on several of these incidents, it has now broken that silence, not to advocate for patient welfare, but seemingly to shield state actors from blame.

The statement has left many questioning whether IGMH's priority is public health or political loyalty. Critics say the hospital’s role is not to speculate on causation in politically sensitive cases, but to deliver unbiased care and advocate for transparency and justice when patients are harmed under such troubling circumstances.

As pressure mounts, calls are growing not only for institutional reform but for the full depoliticization of vital services. With public confidence at an all-time low, the government's handling of this case, and IGMH’s role in it, may prove a defining moment in the ongoing debate over accountability, healthcare integrity, and civil liberties in the Maldives.