Officials in Hazribagh district of Jharkhand have formed a three-member fact-Khoj committee after a pregnant woman, who was reportedly denied entry into a government hospital on the basis that the fetus died in the womb, gave birth to a healthy child in a private hospital.
According to an official of the District Health Department, Manisha Kumari went into labor on Thursday and traveled 120 km with her husband Vinod Sao in Hazribagh with Sheikh Beggar Medical College Hospital (SBMCH). In the hospital, however, the couple was reportedly told that Manisha’s hemoglobin was low and had lost the child.
The official said the couple went to a private hospital, St. Columba Mission Hospital, where Manisha gave birth to a healthy child.
On contact, Hazribagh Deputy Commissioner Shashi Prakash said that a three-member fact-khoj committee has been formed to investigate the issue.
“An inquiry is going on, and until the report is submitted, commenting or taking action will be premature. The two sides will present their version, and a decision can be taken only after a fair investigation,” he said.
The issue took a political turn when the patient’s husband claimed that he had received support from Sanjeevani Seva Cottage – a private aid desk started in January by Hazribagh BJP MLA Pradeep Prasad. The next day, BJP MP Manish Jaiswal visited the hospital to meet the Superintendent, which was not found in his office.
Addressing the media in the hospital, Jaiswal said that he had spoken to the couple and no doctor was available at night.
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He said, “We demand justice for the poor woman, as she was forced to go to an ineffective private hospital after being disappointed with the government facility. We also demand action from the Health Minister against the woman doctor who was on duty at night,” he said.
In response, Health Minister Irfan Ansari said in a press statement that the female doctor at the center of the dispute had called the allegations against her “false and politically motivated”.
According to the minister, the doctor had resigned, Chief Minister Hemen Soren and Ansari were marked.
Ansari quoted the doctor as he wrote in his statement, quoting the doctor,
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He “effectively folded (hospital) was included in a BJP office where illegal activities took place at night” at Sanjeevani Seva cottage.
In response to the allegations, BJP’s Hazaribagh BJP MLA Pradeep Prasad said that the volunteers of the organization had “only highlighted the poor situation of the hospital”
“If anyone can prove that the service cottage was working as a BJP office, I will resign,” Prasad told the media on Friday. Calls to Sanjeevani Seva Kutir were unlikely.
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