Identification of bodies is not responsibility of management: Gauhati Medical College and Hospital (GMCH)

STAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI: The Superintendent of the Gauhati Medical College and Hospital (GMCH) clarified that the recent incident regarding the exchange of dead bodies was not the responsibility of the hospital management.

Dr Abhijit Sarma said that there was no negligence regarding the matter from the hospital side. He added, "If anyone has to be blamed, it should be the guardians and the police, not us."

The Superintendent of the institution also shared a report of the incident, which mentioned, "On May 1, 2023, the officer in charge of Satgaon police station, Guwahati, kept the dead body of a deceased person named Laxmi Chetri in the mortuary of GMCH. On May 2, at around 2.50 pm, a letter was received from SI (P) of Basistha Police Station requesting the post-mortem examination of a deceased person named Sewali Rajbongshi. The body was identified by UBC 323 Babul Saikia of Basistha PS along with the husband of the deceased Kandarpha Saikia, and after following all the formalities, the post-mortem examination was conducted by Dr. Priyadarshani TC (on duty PGT) under the supervision of Dr. Kan Bapu Choudhury, Associate Professor, Department of Forensic Medicine, GMCH, vide Post-mortem report no. 1421/2023 After the post-mortem examination of the deceased was over, the body was handed over to the escorting police, UBC 323 Babul Saikia of Basistha PS."

Attendants of the late Laxmi Chetri visited the mortuary with personnel from the Satgaon PS on the morning of May 3 to claim the body. But it was revealed that the dead body on which the post-mortem examination (PMR No. 1421/2023) was conducted was actually the body of the deceased Laxmi Chetri, whom the escorting police of the Basistha PS and the attendant of the deceased Sewali Rajbongshi identified as the body of the deceased Sewali Rajbongshi.

"It is the duty of the police to identify the body, not the person in the mortuary. Moreover, if there is any negligence from our side, the attendant should have visited me for clarification," added the superintendent.

He also shared a copy of a challan where the UBC 323 Babul Saikia of Basistha PS claimed to have identified the body; on the other hand, the deceased's husband, i.e., Kandarpha Saikia, had signed the challan while receiving the body.

Also Read: GMCH (Gauhati Medical College and Hospital) goof-up in handing over bodies

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