Mumbai: The State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission has dismissed a case filed against Bombay Hospital and its team of medical officers over allegations of deficiency in service, thereby setting aside the South Mumbai’s District Commission’s 2019 order.
The State Commission, presided over by President S.P. Tavade and Member Vijay Premchandani, has also directed the department to refund the amount deposited by the hospital while filing the appeal against the earlier order.
The case was originally filed by Colaba resident Meena Divekar (now 80), who alleged that she had allegedly contracted the Hepatitis C virus during her admission at Bombay Hospital in 2007 for a hysterectomy procedure. Divekar claimed the infection was due to the hospital’s negligence in maintaining a sanitized environment in the operation theatre.
The South Mumbai District Consumer Commission, in its 2019 order, had directed the hospital to pay Rs 5 lakh in compensation for mental agony and reimburse medical expenses. Dissatisfied with the awarded compensation, Divekar had filed an appeal seeking an enhancement to Rs 19 lakh.
In its defense, the hospital submitted fresh evidence before the State Commission, including an expert opinion from a three-member committee of doctors formed by the Dean of J.J. Hospital. The panel—comprising Dr. Abhay Chaudhari, Dr. V.K. Joglekar, and Dr. Rekha Davar—stated that they could not conclusively determine whether the complainant had contracted Hepatitis C due to the surgery performed on July 24, 2007.
The committee noted that reports dated September 22, 2007, and December 3, 2007—pertaining to HCV RNA viral load and genotyping—were not made available to them. Without these reports, the doctors stated, it was not possible to confirm whether the complainant’s Hepatitis C infection was a direct result of the surgery.
“Bombay Hospital is a reputed institution in Mumbai known for conducting surgeries with utmost care and by following established medical procedures and protocols, which were also followed in this case,” the expert report noted.
“The complainant showed symptoms of Hepatitis C eight weeks post-surgery. According to medical literature, symptoms can appear between two to seven weeks after exposure. However, many infected individuals may remain asymptomatic. Without the viral load reports, it cannot be determined whether the infection progressed to a chronic condition,” reads the report.
The Commission held, “It was incumbent upon the complainant to establish the deficiency on the part of the opponent hospital and its medical officers with credible evidence. Mere possibility, as expressed by the complainant, is not conclusive. The expert opinion of J.J. Hospital is also not sufficient to prove any negligence or deficiency in service. Therefore, the observations and order of the District Consumer Commission are found to be incorrect and are hereby set aside.”
