Court Dismisses Bail Plea of Doctor in Newborn Fire Tragedy

A court rejected the bail plea of an on-duty doctor at a private hospital where a fire killed seven newborns and injured five. The court criticized the doctor for working outside his qualifications and noted his insufficient response during the incident. The case remains under investigation.

A court on Monday dismissed the bail plea of an on-duty doctor at a private hospital where a devastating fire on May 25 killed seven newborns and injured five others. The court questioned why the accused, despite being an Ayurvedic doctor, was working in the most critical ward of the facility.

The court also condemned as 'highly insensitive' the doctor's statement that the infants died not due to burns from the blaze but from suffocation. Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Vidhi Gupta Anand noted that Dr. Akash and the hospital owner, Dr. Naveen Khichi, were both sent to judicial custody for 14 days starting May 30.

Rejecting the argument that Dr. Akash was merely a trainee, the court revealed that he had provided treatment and prescriptions to the infants. The investigation showed that he was authorized to practice only in Haryana but was found working unlawfully in the critical ward at the hospital. The court dismissed the doctor's counsel's argument that he should be commended for trying to save the infants' lives. Instead, evidence suggested he fled the hospital when the fire started, wasting crucial time by not calling emergency services immediately.