Kerala hospital gives kin wrong body for cremation, court slaps 25 lakh fine

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Kerala State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission has ordered a leading private hospital in Ernakulam to pay Rs 25 lakh as compensation to the family of a man, whose body was mistakenly handed over to another family for cremation.

According to the petitioners, Purushothaman, a retired district registrar in the state registration department was undergoing treatment at Ernakulam Medical Centre. He died of a cardiac arrest on December 30, 2009. As his three daughters were out of town, Purushotaman's body was kept in the hospital's mortuary. When his relatives approached the hospital on January 1, 2010, for release of the body, they were given another one.

Following police intervention, it was revealed that Purushothaman's body had been released to the family of another man, Lt Col A P Kanthy, who died on the same day as Purushothaman. The hospital claimed it was a mistake of the Kanthy family, who had wrongly identified the body, and also claimed the complaint had been settled between both families.

But evidence showed hospital staff had carelessly released Purushothaman's body to Kanthy's family.

The consumer forum dismissed the hospital's claims and ordered Rs 25 lakh as compensation to Purushothaman's family.