Madhya Pradesh: Covid patient dies after being raped in hospital

Victim was a Bhopal Gas Tragedy Survivor

Ground Report | News Desk: A covid patient was raped and killed last month at a government hospital in the state of Madhya Pradesh, authorities kept the incident a secret for a month.

Officials at the Bhopal Memorial Hospital and Research Center (BMHRC) in Madhya Pradesh said more than a month has passed since the death of a covid patient and the arrest of the accused within 24 hours of the rape. He has since confessed to this inhuman incident.

What was the incident?

According to police, a 43-year-old woman was admitted to BMHRC on April 6 after contracting covid. She complained to the hospital management about the sexual abuse by a ward boy and also identified the accused.

According to the police, after being raped, the patient's condition deteriorated and she had to be shifted to a ventilator, but she died within a few hours.

According to senior police officer Irshad Wali, based on the victim's complaint, the police registered a case and arrested the accused Santosh Ahirwar, a ward boy. He is currently lodged in Bhopal Central Jail.

Defending the report to the media a month after the incident, Irshad Wali said that the victim had requested not to reveal her identity and the incident to anyone, "he said.

Sources said that Santosh Ahirwar had earlier been accused of sexually abusing a 24-year-old nurse and was suspended for a few days.

Affected by Bhopal gas tragedy

The raped woman was also a victim of the 1984 Bhopal gas tragedy. The Bhopal Gas Victims' Organization has written a letter to state officials on the incident, drawing attention to the deteriorating condition of covid wards in the BMHRC.

The organization wrote, "The BMHRC administration used all its power to cover up this heinous and criminal incident. Even the family members of the raped woman were not informed of the incident."

The letter further said that the victims of Bhopal gas tragedy are seven times more likely to die from covid than normal patients. However, the hospital does not have proper arrangements for the proper care of such patients.

Immediate action

The Bhopal Deputy Inspector General of Police said in a statement that the victim had reported the incident to the hospital management on April 6, after which the hospital informed the police.

The case was registered under the provisions of rape and the accused was arrested within a few hours. He was produced in court the next day, after which he has been in jail and the police have taken legal action against him and the victim's family. There will be no shortage of justice."

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