Locals vandalise Sagarmathazonal hospital over child’s death

Rajbiraj, September 22

Locals today resorted to vandalising Saptari’s Rajbiraj-based Gajendranarayan Singh Sagarmatha Zonal Hospital accusing the doctors of pronouncing a live child dead.

Relatives and locals vandalised emergency ward of the zonal hospital over the death of Ashok Sah’s son Siddhartha(18 months) of Birendra Bazaar in Rupani Rural Municiplaity-6, Saptari.

Siddhartha was admitted to Unique Hospital at Rupani Rural Municipality at 8:00pm on Friday night after being bitten by a snake. As he could not be treated at the hospital, Siddhartha was referred to Sagarmatha Zonal Hospital where he was pronounced dead immediately by a  doctor.

The body of Siddhartha was kept in the post-mortem section on Friday night. Father Ashok had pressed the hospital to hand over the child claiming that he had seen the minor move when he went to see the child in post-mortem section this morning. Ashok told the hospital that he wanted to take the child to another hospital for treatment.

Irate locals and relatives had resorted to vandalising the emergency ward after the doctors told them that body could not be handed over unless post-mortem and other legal procedures were completed.

Irate locals and relatives had forcefully received Siddhartha’s body from the post-mortem section and taken it to snakebite centre of the Nepali Army at Choharwa of Mirchaiya Municipality in Siraha. “The child was already dead before he was brought to the zonal hospital. Relatives and others went on the rampage as they were in illusion,” a doctor at the hospital said.

Doctor at the Nepali Army’s Snakebite Centre too had declared the child dead. It is learnt that relatives and locals vandalised the hospital, accusing the doctors of negligence.

A large number of security personnel had been deployed after tension ran high at the hospital. Doctors and health workers had halted delivery of health services, saying that they were manhandled by the minor’s relatives and local people.

Meanwhile, a meeting of Rajbiraj mayor, victim’s family members, Saptari SP RajendraBista and Medical Superintendent Dr Chumanlal Das held at the hospital has formed a probe committee led by Rajbiraj Municipality Mayor ShambhuYadav to investigate into the incident.

The committee comprises one deceased’s family member, Inspector, one doctor from zonal hospital, former law maker Suryanath Yadav, among others. The body is at the zonal hospital and post-mortem on the body will be conducted tomorrow, according to Medical Superintendent Dr Chumanlal Das at the Gajendranarayan Singh Sagarmatha Zonal Hospital. After the formation of the committee, the hospital has resumed its services as usual.