Doc in dock for surgery after 14 years

Fourteen years after a 50-year-old woman died at a private hospital during surgery, a city court has ordered framing of charges against the doctor whose negligence led to her untimely death.

Fourteen years after a 50-year-old woman died at a private hospital during surgery, a city court has ordered framing of charges against the doctor whose negligence led to her untimely death.

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Citing the critical nature of the surgery, Additional Sessions Judge Kamini Lau said, “The accused undertook the risk of operating the patient in his clinic, despite knowing that his clinic does not possess any facility to handle critical cases.”

On August 8, 1996 Rajinder Singh and his wife Harminder Kaur (the deceased) had visited the clinic of Dr. P.K. Gambhir in Rajouri Garden with a complaint of excessive mensuration. Dr Gambhir had advised Laproscopic Hysterectomy (removal of uterus using Laproscopic procedure) to Kaur and directed her to get some tests done.

After examining the test reports, the petitioner Dr. P.K. Gambhir advised an operation on August 13, 1996, during which Kaur suffered a cardiac arrest.

According to Gambhir, doctors tried their best to revive her. Later, Gambhir told Rajinder that his wife is being shifted to RML Hospital. Harminder died on her way to the hospital.

On August 4, 2008, a trial court ordered framing of charges against Gambhir and his team of four doctors, who assisted him in the operation.

Gambhir filed a revision petition in the Sessions Court against the order.

However, citing gross negligence on the part of the doctor, the judge said, “I find sufficient material on record warranting the framing of charges against the accused.” Meanwhile, the court did not find sufficient evidence to frame charges against four other doctors at Gambhir’s clinic.