The MP high court observed that a doctor can only be prosecuted for negligence based on the opinion of an expert. The bench of Justice MS Bhatti referred to a supreme court judgement while dismissing a petition by a man seeking lodging of an FIR against doctors of a private hospital on charges of culpable homicide for the death of his son due to alleged negligence.

Shambhulal Khattar from Umaria town in his petition said that his son was admitted at a hospital in Jabalpur for surgery for removal of stone on January 27, 2022. He was operated upon the same evening and shifted to general ward. On January 29, his son fell down and in the absence of emergency services, he died due to cardiac arrest.

When demanded, the hospital management refused to give fitness, ECG and CBC report and other documents related to his son. Following correspondence, the ECG report was given but the number of the ECG report was different from the ECG report they had seen in the hospital. He sought to lodge an FIR at Madan Mahal police station in Jabalpur, but the police didn't register a case. He had lodged a complaint with CMHO Jabalpur also, who constituted a two-member probe committee, which gave the hospital a clean chit.

He presented papers of district medical board Umaria which opined that blood pressure of the deceased before the surgery was 140: 90 and in such a situation, surgery should not have been carried out. Counsel for the state govt argued that no doctor has been made a respondent in the petition, therefore the petition is not maintainable.

Justice Bhatti, however, dismissed the petition while referring to a supreme court judgement in which the apex court has laid down that any doctor can be prosecuted for professional negligence only if an expert gives an opinion to this effect.

Source: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bhopal/hc-doc-cannot-be-prosecuted-for-negligence-without-expert-opinion/articleshow/116640749.cms