NCPC fines private hospital in Kolkata with Rs 1.25 crore over negligence in treatment

A female doctor died in a private hospital here due to medical negligence. The kin of the deceased then filed a case of medical neglect in the National Consumer Protection Court (NCPC) seeking compensation.

Kolkata:In a serious case of medical negligence, 'The National Consumer Protection Court' (NCPC) slapped a fine of Rs 1 crore 25 lakh against a Kolkata-based private hospital holding it responsible for the death of a female doctor - Arunima Sen - in 2014. Apart from the fine, the court has also asked the hospital to pay another 2 lakh as the expenses to the family had to bear for the legal process.

The incident came to the fore when Somraj Sen - husband of Dr Arunima Sen lodged a complaint at Alipore police station alleging that the private hospital and seven doctors were responsible for the death of his wife. Somraj also simultaneously filed a complaint with the NCPC for compensation.

The complaint lodged by Somraj said that Arunima who was also the doctor of the same hospital got herself admitted following a severe pain in the lower abdomen during menstruation. Sen had polycystic ovarian syndrome and so the doctors advised her to undergo a laparoscopic dye test.

The complaint also said that Arunima was reluctant to take the test but finally had to give in to the doctor's pressure. Incidentally Sen died of a heart attack during the treatment and her husband moved the police station and the NCPC

However, after the verdict, no response was available from the deceased’s husband in this regard. On the other hand, the private hospital said that the verdict is yet to reach them. Taking cognisance of the matter, the NCPC asked the state's chief secretary to submit a report to the court after probing whether the medical infrastructure of the concerned private hospital is in line with the conventional treatment or not.