Probes, however crucial, shouldn’t hit hospital functioning: Karnataka court

The Karnataka High Court recently ruled that criminal investigations, even those deemed crucial, must not impede a hospital's ability to provide care to its patients. Justice M Nagaprasanna made this statement while dismissing six notices served to Cloudnine Hospital in Bengaluru by the Konanakunte police regarding the death of a 29-year-old woman during surgery in May.

The court emphasized that an Unnatural Death (UDR) inquiry is meant to establish the circumstances surrounding an unnatural death, not to serve as a carte blanche for an unrestricted investigation or to grant the police unfettered access to any individual related to the treatment. The hospital sought the cancellation of the police notices after the woman, Spoorthi Chithriki, passed away during a hysteroscopic polypectomy surgery due to an unforeseen intra-operative complication.

The hospital provided all necessary information to the police in response to the notices, but the police issued three more notices seeking additional technical information, the operation theatre equipment, and evidence from hospital staff. The hospital challenged the police notices in court, arguing that doctors cannot be subjected to relentless scrutiny without compelling reasons.

The court acknowledged the doctors' responsibility to provide records but stated that the police had blurred the line between an UDR inquiry and a full-fledged criminal investigation by repeatedly issuing notices, demanding voluminous information, and summoning hospital staff. The court ruled that the current investigation "would only legitimize an exercise of power that the statute does not sanction," and its order would not affect the Karnataka Medical Council's inquiry into the woman's death.