Madras High Court Orders Compensation for Medical Negligence

Chennai: Upholding the order of the Sub Court, the Madras High Court bench has recently asked the Dean of the Government Medical College Hospital in Tiruvarur District and the Collector to pay Rs 5 lakh compensation to a woman who had lost vision in her eye as a result of medical negligence in a surgery conducted at the hospital back in 2015.

In fact, the HC bench of Justice S.M. Subramaniam has also clarified that the entire award should be deposited to the credit of an execution petition pending before the Principal Subordinate Court in Tiruvarur by January 10, 2023.

If the Dean and the Collector fail to submit the money within the deadline, the Sub Court could initiate the process of attachment of the movable properties in the hospital and the Collectorate, the HC bench has clarified in the order.

These orders were issued by the HC bench while considering a civil revision petition filed by the Dean and the Collector against the attachment order passed by the Sub Court on September 29, 2022.

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As per the latest media report by The Hindu, the Sub Court had issued the attachment order since the officials had not paid the compensation amount awarded to the woman back in 2016. The concerned woman allegedly had lost the vision in her eye because of medical negligence conducted during the operation at the hospital.

The High Court bench did not find any justification in the revision petition filed by the officials. It was observed by the bench that the officers remained silent over the matter since 2016. Further, the bench noted that the officials had not challenged the ex-parte award passed in favor of the victim woman and had moved against the attachment proceedings after six years.

"As far as the present Civil Revision Petition is concerned, this court does not find any reason to interfere with the order of attachment passed by the execution court," the bench noted at this outset.

However, the bench also considered the fact that people might have to face problems if the movable properties of the office of the Dean and the Collector got attached. Therefore, in order to maintain the decorum of the public offices, the bench has ordered that the attachment order could be kept in abeyance till January 10, 2023.

If even by January 10, the concerned officials failed to deposit the entire amount, the HC bench has clarified that the Sub Court could proceed with the attachment order.

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