State Government Refutes Claims Mistreatment of Bodies at Gandhi Hospital Mortuary

Hyderabad: The Telangana government on Wednesday submitted to the High Court that the Gandhi Hospital at Secunderabad was providing free hearse service, along with a freezer box, to transport bodies of deceased patients.

With the submission, it denied accusations that the hospital staff was treating bodies in an undignified manner, stating that the hospital mortuary had 62 freezer boxes, of which only 20-25 are generally in use. Also, the hospital receives 15-20 bodies in medico-legal cases, for which post-mortem examinations are done.

The government strongly refuted allegations and news reports that the bodies were being left to rot in the mortuary, after the High Court took suo motu cognisance of the matter and issued notices to the Chief Secretary, principal secretary and commissioner of health and medical department of Gandhi Hospital.

The superintendent of Gandhi Hospital, in his counter, stated that the reports were unsubstantiated and not rooted in fact. He told the court that following autopsies, bodies are immediately handed over to families.

Further, unclaimed bodies are kept for five to six days, after which they are handed over to municipal authorities, he said.