UP: 14-day-old baby 'slammed on floor' by hospital staff, body exhumed after parents refuse to pay bribe

(Representative image)

A 14-day-old baby was allegedly "slammed on floor" by the hospital staff at district women's hospital in Pilibhit, Uttar Pradesh, for not paying a bribe of Rs 5,000 for post-delivery procedure, the child's parents alleged.

The family further stated that the child's body was exhumed on Friday following the district magistrate's orders of a "proper autopsy to ascertain the cause of his death", according to a report by The Times of India.

The parents claimed "carelessness and a deliberate act of aggression by the hospital staff".

However, district chief medical officer (CMO) Dr Alok Kumar said the autopsy was conducted by a two-member panel. He said, "It was fully documented via videography to ensure a transparent probe."

Further legal steps would depend on the autopsy's findings, the CMO added, TOI reported.

The hospital's chief medical superintendent Dr Rajesh Kumar has refuted the allegations. He said that a Pilibhit resident was admitted to the hospital on December 2 and she delivered a healthy child the next day. Doctors recommended a cesarean procedure and sought the couple's consent, which was denied, he said, adding that the doctors then went ahead with vacuum extraction delivery procedure.

The CMS said, "As the vacuum procedure usually causes a ‘chignon' (temporary swelling due to a build up of blood-like fluid left in the baby's head area), the father, Mradul Singh, claimed it to be a head injury. But before the doctors could shift the baby to a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, his father took him to a private hospital. Later, they claimed the baby was killed by hospital staff."