The medical director of an abortion clinic has accused regulators of carrying out a “witch-hunt” after one of its doctors was suspended and the clinic banned from performing further surgeries.

AHPRA initially announced it was conducting a special investigation into several practitioners at Melbourne’s Hampton Park Women’s Health Clinic last week, following the death of a 30-year-old woman Harjit Kaur in January.

It also revealed that a gynaecologist at the centre, Dr Rudolph Lopes, had been suspended under emergency powers, although it has not explained the reason behind the decision.

Last month, the Victorian health department suspended the clinic from offering day procedures, saying it was “operating in a manner that poses serious risks to patient health or safety”.