You trust doctors to save lives – but what happens when they’re the ones deciding who lives or dies? A deeply disturbing case has surfaced from Latur district in Maharashtra, where police are investigating a senior doctor at a government hospital for allegedly instructing a colleague to “kill” a Covid-19 patient during the peak of the 2021 pandemic. During the 2021 pandemic time, hospitals were crowded with patients and resources were scarce.
An audio clip recently surfaced on social media of the purported conversation between the accused, Dr Shashikant Deshpande, who was then additional district surgeon at the Udgir Government Hospital in Latur, and Dr Shashikant Dange, who was posted at a Covvid-19 care centre.
The patient, Kausar Fatima, wife of Dayami Ajimoddin Gaussoddin (53), had later recovered from the disease. But what her husband heard when she was admitted to the Laur hospital may haunt him forever.
In the audio clip, Dr Deshpande is allegedly heard saying: “Don’t allow anyone to go inside, just kill that Dayami woman.”
To this, Dr Dange responds cautiously, noting that oxygen support had already been reduced.
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The Udgir city police has registered a complaint against Dr Deshpande on the complaint of Gaussoddin under legal provisions for deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings and other offences. Police have also seized his mobile phone.
The police have also issued a notice to Dr Dange. “He is out of district and will come tomorrow. After that, we will collect his mobile phone and conduct an inquiry,” inspector Dilip Gade told PTI.
As per the FIR, the complainant said that in 2021, during the pandemic, his wife Kausar Fatima (then aged 41), tested positive for Covid-19.
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She was admitted as an inpatient at the government hospital in Udgir on April 15, 2021. Covid-19 treatment was being administered in a facility across from the eye hospital on Nanded Road, which was managed by the same hospital. Dr. Dange was overseeing the treatment of Covid-19 patients at that centre.
The woman remained admitted there for 10 days. Around the seventh day of her admission, her husband was sitting beside Dr Dange while he was having lunch. At that moment, Dr Dange, who received a call from Dr Deshpande, placed the phone on speaker and continued the conversation regarding hospital matters.
During the call, Dr Deshpande enquired about bed availability.
When Dr Dange informed him that there were no vacant beds, the man claimed that he distinctly heard Dr Deshpande saying, “Kill the Dayami patient. You’re used to dealing with such people.”
He also allegedly made a caste-based slur during the conversation, as per the man’s complaint.
The man said he was shocked, but chose to remain silent at the time since his wife was still undergoing treatment. A few days later, his wife recovered and was discharged.
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