The Maharashtra Police, which is probing a case in which 54 bones and 12 skulls were found at a hospital in Wardha on January 8, has got court permission to access a “confidential file” of the hospital. The file contains names of women who underwent abortion at the clinic, which the hospital was refusing to share with the police citing patient confidentiality.
The Wardha police had said they wanted to check if the hospital carried out abortion on any other minor girl without informing the police, in which case they could face further action.
The incident came to light on January 9 when the police registered an FIR on the complaint given by a 13-year-old girl’s mother that Dr Rekha Kadam at the hospital had carried out abortion of the girl when she was five months pregnant. Even though sex with a minor constitutes rape as per law and the hospital is expected to inform the police in such cases, the hospital allegedly did not do so.
The police arrested Dr Rekha and later, while conducting a search on the Kadam hospital premises, found 12 skulls and 54 bones of foetuses. Later, the police arrested Rekha’s husband Dr Niraj as well.
Meanwhile, Arvi police in Wardha district on Wednesday arrested Dr Niraj and Dr Rekha in a second FIR registered against them for several procedural violations, including stealing medicines from the Arvi sub district hospital which were allegedly used at their private hospital for medical termination of pregnancy ( MTP) surgeries.
The couple was first arrested after the January 9 FIR. After their police custody ended, Dr Niraj and Dr Rekha were sent to Wardha jail. “We took their custody from Wardha jail and arrested them. We will produce them before a Sessions court on Thursday to seek their custody in the second FIR,” said a police officer from Arvi police station.
Wardha SP Prashant Holkar told The Indian Express, “We approached the court with an application seeking access to the file maintaining the records at the hospital. Two days back, the court passed an order granting us access to the documents. That should help us get some evidence in the next few days.”
Holkar further said that nearly 10 members of the Nagpur Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) that were conducting tests on the bones found at the hospital tested Covid positive leading to delays in the probe.
Apart from police action, the Wardha Civil Surgeon has given a complaint to the local court against the hospital for allegedly not following guidelines under the Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (PCPNDT) Act.
District civil surgeon Sachin Tadas said, “As per the procedure laid down in the Act, we have given a complaint to the local court that has taken cognisance in the matter. If the charges are proved, the doctors could spend three years behind bars.”
The second FIR against the doctor couple was registered on January 18 on a complaint from Dr Mohan B Sute, Superintendent of Arvi sub district hospital. Sute has alleged that the hospital was using seven beds instead of five it was authorized to use. Besides, Dr Rekha has not registered her MS Gynaecology degree with the Maharashtra Medical Council, the complaint added.
A senior IPS officer said that currently the police will be focusing on the case related to the abortion done on the minor. “As far as looking into the hospital’s failure in following norms related to abortion and other measures is concerned, the committee comprising the Civil Surgeon will look into it,” the official said.
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