MP hospital denies Congress MLA's unsubstantiated claim of corpse sexual abuse
A controversy has erupted in Madhya Pradesh after a Congress MLA alleged that staff at Rewa's government-run Sanjay Gandhi Memorial Hospital (SGMH) mortuary sexually abused the corpses of "beautiful" women.
Abhay Mishra, the MLA from the Semaria Assembly constituency in Rewa district, also claimed that money was being extorted from relatives of the deceased persons in the name of conducting post-mortems.
However, the hospital administration dismissed his twin allegations as baseless and "beyond the truth" and insisted a public representative should think before making such charges.
The Opposition MLA made the allegations of rape involving the bodies of "beautiful" women in SGMH's mortuary on Tuesday while participating in an ongoing protest over lack of health facilities in Rewa district, a video of which is now widely circulating on social media.
The MLA cited a meeting he had with a man two years ago, saying the latter wanted the post-mortem of his late daughter-in-law to be conducted in front of his eyes and sought his help in this regard.
The man said he wanted the autopsy of his "very beautiful" daughter-in-law to be conducted in front of his eyes no matter the cost involved in the examination, according to the legislator.
"When a beautiful woman dies and the body is placed in the mortuary (of SGMH) for post-mortem, and family members are not present, the dead body is raped (by staff)," Mishra quoted the man as telling him.
When Mishra was contacted by PTI regarding the video and his allegations, he said a "gentleman" had told him about the alleged rape with women corpses at the hospital two years ago, and he had made the charges based on his testimony.
Asked if he had any evidence to back his sensational claims, the MLA remarked, "I am a politician, not an eyewitness. People come to us with their problems, and we present them to authorities."
Standing by his allegations, Mishra claimed that a few years ago, when Dr S K Pathak served as the hospital's Chief Medical Officer, three employees were sacked at different times over what he claimed "irregularities" in conducting post-mortems at the government-run medical facility.
"An investigation will reveal all the facts," he maintained.
According to reports, Pathak retired from service in 2011-12.
When contacted by PTI, Pathak denied any cases or allegations of rape or tampering with a corpse at the during his tenure as Chief Medical Officer.
Hospital's current Chief Medical Officer Alakh Prakash, speaking to reporters, dismissed Mishra's allegations as baseless and said there was no truth in them.
"He (Mishra) is a public representative and should think carefully before making such statements," said Prakash.
Prakash said if the MLA has any evidence to back his claims, he can share it with people.
Mishra was in Bhopal on Wednesday, where he staged a sit-in demanding action in a recent case where a woman and her unborn child died in SGMH. He sought justice for the woman's family.
However, police later removed him and his supporters from the protest site, stating they had not obtained permission to stage the protest.
Taking action amid ongoing protests over the woman's death, the government suspended two doctors and as many nursing staff, while the hospital's dean and superintendent were removed from their posts. A magisterial inquiry into the matter is ongoing.
