Bombay HC takes suo moto cognisance of deaths at govt hospitals in Nanded, Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar

Bombay High Court. File Pic

The Bombay High Court, on Wednesday, took suo motu cognisance of the fatalities reported at government-run hospitals in Nanded and Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar. It has requested detailed information from the Maharashtra government regarding this matter.

A division bench, presided over by Chief Justice DK Upadhyaya and Justice Arif Doctor, instructed Advocate General Birendra Saraf, who represented the state government, to provide the bench with comprehensive data on the state's budget allocation for healthcare. This information is expected to be submitted on Thursday, a report in PTI stated.

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According to the report, earlier in the day, advocate Mohit Khanna submitted a letter to the bench, urging it to take suo motu cognizance of these deaths. Initially, the bench advised Khanna to file a formal petition, expressing its intent to issue substantial directives. It also urged the advocate to gather data concerning hospital staff vacancies, medicine availability, the government's expenditure percentage, and more.

However, during the afternoon session, the bench decided to take suo motu cognizance of the issue, expressing scepticism towards the reasons provided by doctors in the hospitals, which cited a shortage of beds, staff, and essential medicines as the causes for the fatalities.

The High Court has scheduled a hearing for the matter on Thursday.

In his letter, Khanna revealed that a total of 31 deaths, including infants, were recorded at the Dr Shankarrao Chavan Government Medical College and Hospital in Nanded within a span of 48 hours, starting from September 30. The letter also highlighted that between October 2 and 3, 18 patients, including infants, succumbed to their ailments at the Government Medical College and Hospital in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar.

The deaths in the hospital have triggered a political furore in the state with the Opposition slamming the Maharashtra government for the deaths. State Congress chief Nana Patole even demanded that a murder case be registered against the government. Amid the unrest, a Shiv Sena MP from Hingoli visited Nanded hospital and made the acting dean clean dirty toilets and a video of the incident has gone viral. The Sena leader has been booked based on the dean's complaint meanwhile, the Indian Medical Association (Maharashtra) has threatened they will launch a stir if action is not taken against MP.