Bijnor court sentences 3 docs to 5 years in jail for death of pregnant woman

August 2023 case:

HT Correspondent

letters@htlive.com

A Bijnor district court has sentenced three doctors, including a female physician, to five years of imprisonment for the death of a pregnant woman caused by medical negligence. The trio has also been slapped a fine of ₹60,500 each. The case was reported on August 25, 2023.

As per the FIR registered in August 2023, Omwati, a resident of Ladoopura, was admitted to the Anmol Health Care Centre in Chandpur area after she experienced labour pains. Husband Yashveer told the police that his wife underwent a surgical procedure and gave birth to a baby girl. However, Omwati’s condition deteriorated due to excessive bleeding post-surgery.

According to the prosecution officer, Mukesh Chauhan, instead of providing emergency care, the doctors in question fled the operation theatre, leaving the patient unattended. Omwati later succumbed to the complications, which, the court ruled, was a direct result of the doctors’ negligence.

Following a complaint by Yashveer, a case of culpable homicide not amounting to murder was registered at the Chandpur police station. The police arrested the accused doctors and later filed a chargesheet.

“During the trial, the prosecution presented eight witnesses. However, in a surprising turn of events, the victim’s husband turned hostile and gave a false testimony, allegedly in collusion with the accused. The court declared him a hostile witness but went ahead with the proceedings based on other witness accounts,” the prosecution officer said.

Dr Pinky Chandrawal, a resident of Mormakdoompur Shivalakalan area; Dr Sanjay Kumar, a resident of Chandpur; and Dr Harish Kumar, a resident of Pattiya Para, were found guilty under various sections of the Indian Penal Code and the Indian Medical Council Act, the officer said, adding, “The court of additional district judge Prakash Chandra Shukla sentenced each of the three convicted doctors to five years in jail on Saturday. The court also imposed a fine of ₹60,500 each on them.”