Murukan death: Police quizzes more doctors

KOLLAM: The crime branch team investigating the death of a migrant labour last month due to the alleged denial of timely medical care has arrived at the preliminary inference that there were lapses on the part of the hospitals and doctors the victim was taken to seeking medical care. The team, headed by DySP A. Ashokan, is understood to have come to the conclusion after questioning doctors from Travancore Medicity Medical College, Meditrina and Azeezia Medical College in the presence of Kollam city police commissioner Ajeetha Beegum at her office here on Monday.  Expert medical professionals were also present during the interrogation.

The hospitals had allegedly denied treatment to Murukan, 37, of Thirunelveli saying there were no vacant ventilators, neurosurgeons and bystanders to take care of the victim, who was injured in a motorcycle accident at Chathannoor here on August 7.  Murukan had to wait eight hours in an ambulance at various hospitals seeking treatment before dying.

The investigating team had on Sunday questioned doctors at Government Medical College Hospital, Thiruvananthapuram, and is planning to question the friend of Murukan who rode the bike and the hospital staff in the coming days. Meanwhile, the police said the investigation report by the director of health services that points to serious laxity in giving him timely medical care is yet to be received. The police had booked authorities of these hospitals in Kollam along with those of SUT Hospital and Government Medical College Hospital in the state capital for negligence under sections of IPC 304 for culpable homicide not amounting to murder.