Sudam and Saraswati Munde, the doctor couple from Parli in Beed district responsible for the death of a 30-year-old pregnant woman have been booked under Section 304 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
Along with doctors, the woman’s husband Mahadev Pattekar has also been charged under the provisions of the Act, which amounts to culpable homicide not amounting to murder.
The woman, Vijaymala Mahadev Pattekar, working as a sugarcane cutting labourer died on May 18 because of hemorrhagic shock following second trimister abortion and heavy blood flow. The woman already had four daughters. There is no evidence of the woman in the mother and child tracking system.
On Sunday, district civil surgeon from Beed and Assistant medical director from Latur were sent to Munde's hospital in Parli where it was found that the hospital was not registered under the Mumbai Nursing Home Act, the pollution control board certificate for the hospital had also expired on March 31, 2011. Munde told the visiting team that he did not keep a record of patients in his OPD-IPD register. Munde and his associates tried to beat up the visiting team members. The visiting team of doctors have told the health department in their report that the Mundes denied they had indulged in sex determination test and abortion of the pregnant woman.
Meanwhile, the state health department has recommended a CID probe into the abortion death case. Public health minister Suresh Shetty said that he has demanded police protection to the medical officers, who have been threatened by the couple.
