A Jharkhand-based doctor has been asked by the apex consumer commission to pay Rs 1.95 lakh for operating upon a woman without conducting the required tests.
Directing the doctor to pay Rs 1.70 lakh to the husband of the patient, who died a month later in another hospital, the National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission also slapped "punitive costs" of Rs 25,000 on her while dismissing the doctor's plea against the orders of the state and district fora of Jharkhand.
"We agree with the conclusion reached by state commission that deficiency and negligence on the part of the opposite party (doctor) in conducting the hysterectomy were apparent and did not require confirmation by any independent expert.
"In the result, the revision petition is found to be completely devoid of any merit and is dismissed as such. We also deem it appropriate to impose punitive cost of Rs 25,000 on revision-petitioner (doctor). The same shall be credited to the consumer welfare fund of the Central Government," the bench presided by Justice J M Malik said.
The state consumer commission had upheld the decision of a district forum there which had held Dr Asha guilty of medical negligence and directed her to pay Rs 1.7 lakh as compensation to the patient's husband, Mohd. Quasim a native of district Deoghar in Jharkhand.
The district forum had noted that the patient had died due to kidney ailment which had not been detected as the required diagnostic tests were not performed.
The doctor in her plea had contended that the patient Sahida Khatoon had died on August 28, 2003, a month after the surgery was done at her clinic on July 23, 2003, and that too in another hospital which had not alleged any negligence in performance of the operation.
She had also argued that the criminal proceedings initiated against her in the matter had also been set aside.
The NCDRC rejected the doctor's contentions, saying it is just "an attempt to shift the focus" and added that acquittal in a criminal case can by itself give no relief in the proceedings before the consumer fora.
