Delhi High Court Quashes FIR Against Hospital After Settlement in Surgical Negligence Case

The Delhi High Court has quashed an FIR filed against a private hospital and a senior doctor following an amicable resolution of a medical negligence dispute.

New Delhi:

In a recent ruling, the Delhi High Court has nullified an FIR registered against Venkateshwar Hospital and Dr. Dipti K. Yadav after the parties reached a settlement in a medical negligence case. The case involved allegations that a cotton mop was left inside a patient's abdominal cavity during a Lower Segment C-Section procedure.

Justice Amit Mahajan, presiding over the single-judge bench, determined that continuing legal proceedings would serve no constructive purpose since the dispute had been "amicably resolved" between the involved parties.

The complainant, who underwent a C-section at the hospital in January 2021, informed the court that she had received compensation of Rs 14 lakh and no longer wished to pursue the case further.

"All the disputes have since been settled, without any coercion, pressure or undue influence," she stated before Justice Mahajan, adding that "continuation of the proceedings would amount to further harassment".

The original FIR was filed at Dwarka North police station under Sections 336, 337, and 34 of the IPC following the complainant's allegation that a cotton mop had been left inside her abdominal cavity during surgery, resulting in severe infection and necessitating additional surgical intervention.

A previous investigation conducted by the Delhi Medical Council (DMC) concluded that while the mop was "in all likelihood" left behind during the C-section, this appeared to result from an error in counting surgical mops.

The DMC found that Dr. Yadav "did not exercise due diligence which is expected from an ordinary prudent doctor," but emphasized that her conduct was "not reckless or patently want to invite criminal liability".

The medical council had ordered the temporary removal of the doctor's name from the State Medical Register for 30 days and recommended disciplinary measures against the scrub nurse who incorrectly counted the surgical mops.

Justice Mahajan, while recognizing the suffering experienced by the complainant, observed, "The incident was unintentional and due to oversight, bereft of the necessary means and such degree of rashness to attract the rigours of a criminal trial."

"The possibility of conviction is remote and bleak and continuation of criminal cases would put the accused to great oppression and prejudice," the judge further stated.

In quashing the FIR and all related proceedings, the Delhi High Court directed the petitioners to deposit Rs 25,000 with the Delhi Police Martyrs' Fund within four weeks.