17-year-old girl dies after doctor forces her into childbirth

Salem: In a gross medical negligence, a lady doctor in Salem forced a 17-year-old girl, who was pregnant for six months and two weeks, into childbirth in her private clinic on Thursday night. The minor girl, who gave birth to a premature baby girl, developed complications after the delivery and died. The Salem rural police arrested the doctor on Saturday night.
A police officer identified the arrested person as M Selvamba Rajkumar, who runs Niharika Hospital and Scan Centre at Vazhapadi in Salem.
He said the minor girl’s parents approached the doctor to abort the pregnancy on Thursday. “The doctor took a scan and told them that abortion was not possible, as the foetus had fully grown. She subsequently conducted a normal delivery the same night after giving medicines to the minor girl, who was raped by two youths on different occasions, to induce labour pain. The girl delivered a premature baby girl. Soon after the delivery, she developed heavy bleeding and breathing difficulties. She was rushed to the Government Mohan Kumaramangalam Medical College and Hospital (GMKMCH) in Salem city, where doctors declared her brought dead.”
Meanwhile, the doctor dumped the new-born premature baby girl in a bin, as the girl’s parents refused to accept the baby. When alerted, the Vazhapadi police rescued the baby and took it to GMKMCH, where it is being kept in an incubator. “The baby’s condition is critical,” the officer said.
The Vazhapadi police registered a case under Section 174 of the Criminal Procedure Code.
Following the incident, a team of doctors led by M Valarmathi, deputy director (incharge) of Medical and Rural Health Services, and Jayaselvi, Vazhapadi Government Hospital Chief Medical Officer, inspected the private hospital on Friday and Saturday and conducted an inquiry with its staff and doctor Selvamba.
“They found that the minor girl was not given anaesthesia and the doctor had not taken any precautionary measures to save the girl. They also found that the doctor knew that the girl was a minor and yet did not inform police or health department authorities. Based their report, we altered the case and booked Selvamba under sections 304(ii) and 315 of the Indian Penal Code and Section 21 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (Pocso) Act. We arrested her today (Saturday) night,” the officer said.
He said Selvamba was admitted to GMKMCH after she complained of giddiness and high blood pressure. “We are planning to produce her before a judicial magistrate tomorrow (Sunday).”
Preliminary inquiry revealed that Selvamba was booked by police in 2018 for revealing the gender identity. The case was also referred to the medical board.
The minor girl’s family. Meanwhile, confessed that she was raped and impregnated by one of the relatives. “While the family members identified the youth who raped her, inquiry revealed involvement of another youth. We are planning to collect blood samples from the duo for a DNA test after getting permission from the court. The baby’s blood samples will also be collected for the same. Based on the test results, one of the youths will be arrested under the Pocso Act.”
A state-level committee is likely to inspect the private hospital on Monday. Based on its report, the district administration is planning to seal the facility.