Lakshmi, the woman was forced to give a birth on the pavement because the Mohan Kumaramangalam Medical College Hospital, Salem turned her away for not paying the Rs 1000-bribe was unable to identify the person who demanded the bribe. However, a departmental inquiry has been conducted with the hospital staff and authorities have also lodged a complaint with the police.
The victim Lakshmi, was unable to identify the person who had demanded a bribe, said Dr R Vallinayakam, Dean of Government Mohan Kumaramangalam Medical College Hospital. She was only able to tell us that the woman was wearing a blue sari. So we have decided to lodge a complaint with the Shevapet police to help us trace the culprit, the dean said.
The woman has subsequently been admitted to the hospital after a lot of hue and cry was raised by the media. Members of the Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI) had come to the hospital to visit the pavement dweller but the hospital administration barred entry to them. We were waiting at the hospital ward and no one allowed us to visit her. They didn't even allow her husband to visit her, said N Praveen Kumar, district secretary, DYFI.
Later about 150 members of the DYFI staged a protest against the hospital authorities and Dean Vallinayakam came to the spot to pacify the protestors and even allowed a few of them to visit Lakshmi. Shockingly, the ones who met her claimed that the hospital authorities hadn t even provided a bed for her and she was lying on the floor. This forced the dean to shift Lakshmi to another ward and she was then transferred to an isolated ward.
