Covid patient dies by suicide at Shimla hospital; magisterial probe ordered

The victim was admitted to hospital here on September 18, a few days ago after testing positive for the coronavirus. (Representational)

A 54-year-old Covid-19 positive woman patient allegedly died by suicide at a government hospital during the intervening night of Tuesday and Wednesday in Shimla, police said. Her family members alleged that negligence by the hospital’s medical staff drove her to suicide.

The victim was admitted to Deen Dyal Upadhyay Hospital here on September 18, a few days ago after testing positive for the coronavirus, an official said. Her son told the police that she was also suffering from hypertension.

The SP said a report from the hospital has been sought and inquest proceedings under Section 174 of CrPC have been initiated. The post-mortem report is awaited, he said.

Deputy Commissioner Amit Kashyap, meanwhile, ordered a magisterial inquiry by Additional District Magistrate (Law and Order) into the incident. A report in the matter will be submitted within 10 days, he said.

No immediate reaction was available from the hospital regarding the incident.

Talking to media, the victim’s brother-in-law alleged that negligent behaviour of the medical staff towards coronavirus patients forced his sister-in-law to take the extreme step. He said he talked to her daily over phone and she told him that she was not being taken care of and not even provided with water. “We gave a water bottle to the hospital staff at 11 am for Kamal, but it reached her at 8 pm. I last talked to her at 10:30 pm on Tuesday. She was upset and disconnected the call,” the relative said.

The family alleged that the victim was also not given medicines on time by the staff.

Deputy Commissioner Amit Kashyap said it was the responsibility of the medical superintendent of DDU hospital for making proper arrangements for Covid-19 patients.

Besides the suicide, there was one other Covid-related casualty reported from the state during the day. There are now more than four thousand active Covid cases in Himachal. The total case tally in the state is 12,899 while the number of deaths is 132. Governor Bandaru Dattatraya’s aide-de-camp tested positive for Covid-19 Wednesday, health officials said. Dattatraya went into home quarantine following the report, but tested negative for the virus.

(With PTI)

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