Daily Times

The Sindh High Court on Wednesday granted pre-arrest bail to the owners of Darul Sehat Hospital (DSH) in Karachi, a day after they fled a lower court that revoked their interim bail.

DSH Chairman Amir Chishti and Vice Chairman Syed Ali Farhan had appeared in the court of District East Additional Sessions Judge Aslam Shaikh on Tuesday for their bail hearing in the case pertaining to the death of nine-month-old Nashwa at their hospital, allegedly due to medical negligence. However, the two owners escaped from the court as it pronounced the order cancelling their bail earlier granted by a judicial magistrate.

The health facility’s owners approached the Sindh High Court on Wednesday, requesting a 10-day interim pre-arrest bail.

Accepting their request, the court granted bail over submission of bonds worth Rs 50,000 each, and issued a notice to the prosecutor general.

Last week, two of the hospital’s doctors accused in the case had also fled in a similar fashion after their bail was cancelled by a local court.

Dr Attiya and Dr Sharjeel, who were among the medical officers arrested over the infant’s death last month, made their escape after a judicial magistrate cancelled their bail. The accused fled the court premises after the hearing ended.

Nine-month-old Nashwa died on April 22, around two weeks after she was allegedly administered a wrong injection at the DSH.

A first information report registered on the request of the infant’s father, Qaiser Ali, stated that he had taken his twin daughters to the DSH for treatment of diarrhoea. He claimed that the infant was given an overdose of the injection, which paralysed her and caused her death. According to a report by the Sindh Health Care Commission, the infant was administered an overdose of potassium chloride, not via a drip, at the hospital.

More than 20 people have been nominated as accused in the case. Five people – nursing in-charge Atif Javed, nurse Sobia Irshad, nurse Agha Moiz, admin officer Ahmer Shahzad and security in-charge Waleedur Rehman – are in jail on judicial remand as the court seeks the final charge sheet in the case. The hospital was sealed following Nashwa’s death but the Sindh High Court ordered for it to be reopened on May 3. Nashwa’s father said that he would approach the Supreme Court over the decision to reopen the hospital.