HC notice to govt on plea challenging inquiry report on journalist Mudasir Ali’s death

HC notice to govt on plea challenging inquiry report on journalist Mudasir Ali’s death

Srinagar: The High Court of Jammu and Kashmir on Friday issued notice to government authorities on a plea challenging the expert committee report on the alleged medical negligence that led to the death of journalist Mudasir Ali in 2020.
The court issued notice to Commissioner/Secretary to Government, Health and Medical Education department, Directorate of Health Services, Kashmir, Deputy Director Health Services, Srinagar, and Expert Committee Head through Dr Abdul Rashid Najar.
The court while issuing notice directed the official respondents to file their objections to the plea within four weeks.
The court issued the notice on a plea filed by Mudasir’s brother Jehangir Ali through counsel Salih Pirzada, which challenged the Expert Committee report dated 22 December 2020 as being in violation of the mandate of Supreme Court directives in matters related to medical negligence.
It was submitted through the plea that the respondent committee was entrusted with the responsibility of enquiring into the allegations of medical negligence committed by the on-duty doctor and the medical staff at SDH, Chrar-i-Sharief, but the committee in the final report although recommending attachment of the delinquent doctor and well as the other staff to Directorate of Health Services, has remained silent on the charge of medical negligence.
“The purpose of constitution of the committee was only to enquire if the on-duty doctor along with the medical staff was negligent in the death of petitioner’s brother,” the plea pointed out.
It was stated that the committee had been derelict in its duty of such enquiry, as it on one hand has directed attachment of the delinquents while on the other hand has deliberately omitted the concluding findings on medical negligence.
“Therefore the impugned committee report being devoid of the findings and contrary to the purpose of its creation is illegal and liable to be quashed,” the petitioner said.
On 20 November 2020, Mudasir Ali died of cardiac arrest despite reaching a sub-district hospital for treatment. The required treatment was allegedly not made available to him, which caused his death.
Jehangir Ali told Kashmir Reader that his brother died of medical negligence and no protocol was followed to save him.
“Even there was no oxygen, no stretcher to carry him, nothing that could have saved him. Even the doctor was asleep,” Ali said.
He added that he wants justice for his brother so that in future these tragedies can be avoided.

 

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