No progress in medical negligence cases in Bengaluru since 2015

According to police data, since 2015, 15 medical negligence cases have been pending in the city, including three each from 2015 and 2016. Of these, four cases are of patients dying during treatment.
Image used for representation only.
Image used for representation only.(File Photo)
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BENGALURU: “My son would have been 23 years old if he were alive. He might have started working and would have reduced my burden. As a construction worker, my life would have been different if he hadn’t slipped into a coma in 2017 due to medical negligence. After struggling for years in a coma, he passed away in January 2024,” said Eshwar, who lost his only son – Vignesh.

This is not Eshwar’s case alone, but a reflection of the struggles faced by many across Karnataka with very few attempting to file cases of medical negligence. Even in cases that are registered, the conviction rate remains zero.

According to police data, since 2015, 15 medical negligence cases have been pending in the city, including three each from 2015 and 2016. Of these, four cases are of patients dying during treatment.

Eshwar told TNIE that he is 51 years old now and had high hopes for his son’s future. Vignesh suffered from a hernia and was admitted to a private hospital in Padmanabhanagar on April 4, 2017. A doctor allegedly administered a high dose of anaesthesia, leaving him in a coma.

Senior doctors advised Eshwar to shift Vignesh to another hospital and promised to cover the expenses. But though the bill ran up to Rs 19 lakh, the management paid only Rs 5 lakh. Vignesh never recovered and passed away. “We filed a case in 2017 at the Banashankari police station and we are yet to get justice,” Eshwar said.

He expressed frustration with the Karnataka Medical Council (KMC) hearings, which are held only on Saturdays. The accused doctor often failed to appear, while dates of hearing kept changing, delaying his pursuit of justice. “I am tired of going to KMC hearings. We still do not know which injection was given to him,” he said, adding that he will continue to seek justice for his son’s death.

DCP (South) Lokesh B Jagalasar told TNIE that because of delays in trials of medical negligence cases, the police are unable to file chargesheet as they are not domain experts. Such cases have been pending for 10 years in the south division as no final reports have been submitted by the boards constituted to probe these cases, he added.

Another senior police officer explained that KMC is a quasi-judicial body comprising doctors and medical experts who conduct hearings. Delays occur because there is no set timeline for submitting reports. The officer also noted that many cases go unreported or are settled out of court with monetary compensation.

Dr Yogananda Reddy, president of KMC, told TNIE that delays in hearings are due to multiple reasons, including Covid, KMC elections and lack of cooperation from respondents and complainants. He stated that complaints often involve multiple accused, which prolongs the process.

He said efforts are being made to speed up the hearings. KMC has doubled the number of hearings on Saturdays and is considering conducting hearings on Fridays as well but it’s under discussion, he added.

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