Covid-19 | Rape
Covid patient raped by male nurse in Bhopal hospital, died; incident surfaces after a month
Bhopal/IBNS: A coronavirus patient, who was also a 1984 Bhopal gas tragedy survivor, was raped by a male nurse in a government hospital in Madhya Pradesh's capital died within 24 hours of the incident, police have revealed after a month of the crime following the arrest of the accused, media reports said.
The victim, a 43-year-old woman, was admitted to Bhopal Memorial Hospital and Research Centre on April 6. She had complained about her ordeal, identifying the accused, in a statement to a doctor, reported NDTV.
Soon her condition deteriorated and the doctors put her on ventilation but she died in the late evening of the same day, the report stated.
A case was registered at Nishatpura Police Station and the accused identified as 40-year-old Santosh Ahirwar, was arrested, the report said, adding that he is lodged at the Bhopal Central Jail awaiting trial.
Senior police official Irshad Wali said the victim had given an application requesting the police to protect her identity and not reveal the incident.
That is why the incident came to light after a month and only the investigating team had been informed about it immediately, he said, the report added.
As the woman was a survivor of the 1984 Bhopal gas tragedy, the association of victims of the disaster has written a letter to the government raising the pathetic condition of the Covid wards at the Bhopal Memorial Hospital Research Centre or BMHRC.
They alleged that BMHRC did everything to hush up the crime and even her family members weren't aware of the incident.
The association demanded an investigation into her death, installation of CCTV cameras in all COVID-19 wards, and measures to ensure the sex offenders are not employed by hospitals.
It termed the incident a "a colossal failure" where the administration and security administrator has to take the responsibility.
The group also noted that the survivors of the Bhopal gas tragedy were seven times more likely to die of Covid-19 than normal individuals.
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