A number of protesters who were injured during the weekend protests and subsequent detentions by the Delhi Police were left with swollen fingers, bruised bodies, and bleeding necks and heads, but say that when the police took them to hospital for treatment, they were denied copies of their medico-legal case (MLC) details and their patient summaries.
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The denial of medical records to injured protesters can have serious consequences, as seen in the case of those hit by pellet guns in the July 20 protest. The Hindu has reported that hospital records had confirmed pellet gun usage, even as the Delhi police denied it.
Hospitals usually make three copies of the MLC, of which two are given to the police, and one is kept in the hospital. The hospital is supposed to share a case summary with the patient, who can also ask the police for a copy of the MLC. However, lawyers say that due to grey areas in the law, a patient has to run from the hospital to the police to get access to their MLCs and case summaries.
Hospitals under pressure
A doctor at one of the hospitals which treated protesters said, on the condition of anonymity, “The usual protocol is that an MLC is registered and copies are provided to the police. The patient can ask the police for the MLC [copy]. We usually give the patients a case summary highlighting the injuries.” A source at one of the hospitals that denied records to patients said that they are pressured not to share any information during protests.
A protester injured on October 10.
Saurabh, a Jamia Millia Islamia student associated with the All India Students’ Association (AISA), alleged that he was beaten up with lathis, and dragged by the collar during his detention following his participation at the Dilli Haat protest on October 10.
“Some of us were taken to separate cells and beaten up, our phones were snatched, and abuses were hurled at us. I ended up with the marks of the sticks on my thighs, and my back,” he said.
Later that night, he and three others were taken to the Pt. Madan Mohan Malviya Hospital, in the presence of the police. “We asked the doctors to document the injuries and they did. But we were not given copies of the MLCs or any medical summaries. The hospitals asked us to take the MLCs from the police and the police refused to give them to us,” he said.
Beaten and stamped
Aranya, a Delhi University student from the Disha Students’ Organisation, whose friends were looking for her for hours on Sunday after she was detained at Connaught Place, had also received bruises on her face, hands, and knees. A friend of hers said, “She was trying to ensure that other protesters do not get detained, when the police started holding her down and dragging her by the hair. Later, she was taken out of the bus, and we all thought that she was being taken to receive medical treatment, and she was brutally beaten up further.”
She added that the police tried to stamp on Ms. Aranya, which left visible boot marks on her shirt. At around 11:30 p.m. that night, she was taken to the Lady Hardinge Medical College (LHMC) in the presence of the police, but was not given any case summary or a copy of the MLC, despite asking for it.
‘Given papers by mistake’
Sooraj Elamon, an activist with the Students’ Federation of India (SFI), alleged that he was slapped and pushed against the iron bars of the prison vans that he was detained in. “I was taken to Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital with six other protesters. Initially, the hospital was ready to treat us and give us the papers, but refused to do the same after police involvement.” One of the seven protesters faced hearing difficulties due to his injuries and is now seeking further treatment in his hometown.
Mr. Elamon said that the protesters got tetanus shots, adding, “Only one other protester and I were given a paper which mentions some of the injuries, while the other five were not. When we asked them why the others did not, we were told that the two of us were given the papers by mistake, and that they were not supposed to share them.”
The three hospitals have not officially responded to The Hindu’s questions about why case summaries were denied to patients. While the Lady Hardinge and Ram Manohar Lohia hospitals are run by the Central government, the Pt. Madan Mohan Malviya hospital is run by the Delhi State government. The Delhi Police too, has not responded to questions about why the medical records and MLC copies were not shared with injured protesters.
