The main legal point established in the judgment is the liability of the doctors for medical negligence, leading to the patient's death, and the award of compensation to the complainant.

ORDER

P.N. Kashalkar, Presiding Judicial Member - This complaint has been filed by Complainant-Mrs. Kalyani Raut, alleging medical negligence on the part of the opposite parties who are Doctors by profession.

2. Stated briefly, the case of the complainant is as under:

According to Complainant, her husband Bharat Raut was suffering from some illness. He had approached opposite party No. 3-Dr. Mahale on 19.4.2003 with complaints of swelling above medial aspect of right elbow joint. Opposite party No. 3-Dr. Mahale advised him to undergo operation in Millennium Hospital opposite party No. 3 falsely assured Complainant that Millennium Hospital is well equipped to perform major surgeries and to handle any complications and there are well qualified doctors in Millennium Hospital for performing surgery. As advised, her husband Mr. Raut got admitted in Millennium Hospital on 21.4.2003 at 11.00 p.m. Mr. Raut was taken to the operation theatre at 8.00 a.m. on 22.4.2003. The diagnosis of the patient was not known to any of the Doctors before he was taken for operation. Opposite party No. 2 - Dr. Hitesh Bafana - Anaesthetist, gave axillary block to Mr. Raut, her husband. At 8.30 a.m., opposite party No. 4-Dr. Dheeraj Mahangade with opposite party No. l-Dr. Manish Motwani, started the operation and excised the swelling. According to Complainant, even after surgery any of the opposite parties still did not know the diagnosis of swelling, whether it was signet cell tumor or a shwanoma or myoma or organized hematoma. The opposite parties were inclined in not sending the excised mass of tissue for histopathological examination for confirmation. That due to carelessness and casual approach of all the opposite parties/Doctors, Mr. Raut went into cardiac arrest and expired within half an hour of starting the surgery. The incision was closed and dressed. Thereafter, the sequence of events happened inside the operation theatre, but, most of them were not recorded in the indoor and operative case notes. In sudden death of the patient in operation theatre only negligent attitude and lack of emergency drugs, equipments and lack of experience of opposite parties Doctors was responsible. According to complainant sudden death of the patient in operation theatre is itself sufficient to prove negligence of all the four Doctors and principle of "res ipsa loquitur" (the thing speaks for itself) is applicable and opposite parties should be directed to prove their innocence rather than complainant having to prove their guilt. After the death of Mr. Raut in operation theatre, the opposite parties did not disclose this fact to the complainant. They shifted the patient to Chetana Hospital keeping the complainant under the belief that her husband was still alive. In Chetana Critical Care Unit, when her husband was taken, it was clearly declared that patient was dead on admission.

According to complainant, opposite parties had neither expertise nor the hospital well equipped which was owned by Homeopathic Doctor (Opposite Party No. 3 - Dr. Dheeraj Mahanagade). They did not disclose death of Mr. Raut immediately after surgery. The Medico Legal Post-Mortem Report mentions cause of death as Complications following intra operative procedure". According to Complainant, opposite parties Doctors negligently managed her husband Mr. Raut in Millennium Hospital, who are clearly responsible for death of her husband. Because all Doctors were grossly negligent, careless in attitude and utterly careless in giving treatment given to her husband.

Complainant had sent legal notice through Advocate Mr. P.N. Chavan on 18.5.2004 to all the opposite parties, but, none of them bothered to give reply. According to complainant, opposite parties owe dues to the complainant. They committed breach of their professional duties and complainant suffered damage. The proximate cause of damage was the brea