Doctors are delaying post-mortem: Family

Two days after Chandra Devi Negi, 52, died at New Delhi's Safdarjung Hospital, where she was admitted in the intensive care unit after being injected with an anti-rabies vaccine, her family is yet to receive her body. Rhythma Kaul reports.

Two days after Chandra Devi Negi, 52, died at New Delhi's Safdarjung Hospital, where she was admitted in the intensive care unit after being injected with an anti-rabies vaccine, her family is yet to receive her body.

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After having failed to get any response from the authorities, the family is camping inside the hospital premises demanding the quick release of the body.

"She died on Friday afternoon, and we have not been given her body yet. Doctors are saying they cannot release the body until the post-mortem is conducted, so we don't understand why they are delaying it," said Hari Singh, her son, who works with the Delhi Police.

Chandra Devi was one of the two persons who had experienced severe respiratory problems and suffered a cardiac arrest after receiving the injection at New Delhi Municipal Council-run Charak Palika Hospital in south Delhi's Moti Bagh on September 19.

The hospital authorities, however, denied that the delay was from their side. "We conduct the post-mortem only after we get a requisition from the police. In this particular case, we are yet to receive the request," said a senior administrative official at the hospital.

"If required we conduct post-mortems even on Sundays, and if the papers were in place, there was no reason why we wouldn't have performed the post-mortem," the official added.

"The post-mortem has to be done by a board, otherwise it can lead to a problem which can later be called medical negligence too. We have written to the authorities concerned, and it should be done by Monday," said DCP (south) Chhaya Sharma.

Anti-rabies vaccines were given to 12 patients that day including Sharma and Chandra. All the other patients are fine. The other victim, Sunil Sharma, an employee of the council, is undergoing treatment at Max Superspecialty Hospital in Saket.