Anger over 10-year-old rape sufferer's demise after alleged therapy delay

[ad_1] Seetu Tewari BBC Hindi, Patna

Cherylann Mollan BBC Information, Mumbai

<img sizes="(min-width: 1280px) 50vw, (min-width: 1008px) 66vw, 96vw" srcset="https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/240/cpsprodpb/ca60/live/30f9aa20-4038-11f0-96dd-159a5fa3589d.jpg.webp 240w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/320/cpsprodpb/ca60/live/30f9aa20-4038-11f0-96dd-159a5fa3589d.jpg.webp 320w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/480/cpsprodpb/ca60/live/30f9aa20-4038-11f0-96dd-159a5fa3589d.jpg.webp 480w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/640/cpsprodpb/ca60/live/30f9aa20-4038-11f0-96dd-159a5fa3589d.jpg.webp 640w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/800/cpsprodpb/ca60/live/30f9aa20-4038-11f0-96dd-159a5fa3589d.jpg.webp 800w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/1024/cpsprodpb/ca60/live/30f9aa20-4038-11f0-96dd-159a5fa3589d.jpg.webp 1024w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/1536/cpsprodpb/ca60/live/30f9aa20-4038-11f0-96dd-159a5fa3589d.jpg.webp 1536w" src="https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/480/cpsprodpb/ca60/live/30f9aa20-4038-11f0-96dd-159a5fa3589d.jpg.webp" loading="eager" alt="Getty Images Members of Maitree Womens Rights Organization protest against the remission of life sentences for those convicted in the Bilkis Bano rape trial on August 24, 2022 in Kolkata, India." class="sc-d1200759-0 dvfjxj"/> Getty Pictures Instances of rape and sexual assault typically make headlines in India

The demise of a 10-year-old rape sufferer within the japanese Indian state of Bihar after an alleged delay in medical therapy has sparked outrage within the nation.

The lady died on Sunday morning on the state government-run Patna Medical Faculty and Hospital (PMCH) within the capital Patna.

Her uncle has alleged that the kid's situation worsened as she was stored ready in an ambulance for round 4 hours on Saturday earlier than being admitted to the hospital.

PMCH authorities have denied this, saying that claims of a delay in admission are "baseless".

The lady's demise has made nationwide headlines, with opposition leaders accusing the Bihar authorities - a coalition led by the Bharatiya Janata Social gathering (BJP) and Janata Dal United (JD(U)) - of gross mismanagement. The federal government has denied any negligence.

The lady is from the Dalit group, which is on the backside of the Hindu caste hierarchy. Dalits face widespread mistreatment in India regardless of legal guidelines in place to guard them.

Following the outrage, the Nationwide Human Rights Fee and Nationwide Fee for Ladies have criticised the incident and requested for the hospital's function to be investigated.

Rape victims can't be named underneath Indian legislation.

<img sizes="(min-width: 1280px) 50vw, (min-width: 1008px) 66vw, 96vw" srcset="https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/240/cpsprodpb/de79/live/74750390-4037-11f0-b6e6-4ddb91039da1.jpg.webp 240w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/320/cpsprodpb/de79/live/74750390-4037-11f0-b6e6-4ddb91039da1.jpg.webp 320w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/480/cpsprodpb/de79/live/74750390-4037-11f0-b6e6-4ddb91039da1.jpg.webp 480w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/640/cpsprodpb/de79/live/74750390-4037-11f0-b6e6-4ddb91039da1.jpg.webp 640w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/800/cpsprodpb/de79/live/74750390-4037-11f0-b6e6-4ddb91039da1.jpg.webp 800w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/1024/cpsprodpb/de79/live/74750390-4037-11f0-b6e6-4ddb91039da1.jpg.webp 1024w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/1536/cpsprodpb/de79/live/74750390-4037-11f0-b6e6-4ddb91039da1.jpg.webp 1536w" src="https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/480/cpsprodpb/de79/live/74750390-4037-11f0-b6e6-4ddb91039da1.jpg.webp" loading="lazy" alt="Getty Images A photo of a brown building with glass windows, which is the Patna Medical College Hospital in Bihar state." class="sc-d1200759-0 dvfjxj"/> Getty Pictures PMCH is Bihar's oldest medical school

The lady was raped on 26 Could, allegedly by a person who lived close to her aunt's home in Muzaffarpur. Police have arrested the person and are investigating the crime.

The lady went lacking whereas she was enjoying exterior her home. Her relations later discovered her mendacity injured close to a highway. Police officers have instructed reporters that she had a number of knife wounds.

She was first taken to an area hospital after which to the Sri Krishna Medical Faculty and Hospital (SKMCH), round 85km (53 miles) from Patna.

Kumari Vibha, the superintendent of SKMCH, instructed BBC Hindi that the kid had a number of accidents, together with wounds on her chest and neck, however that her situation had stabilised. She was referred to PMCH as she wanted reconstruction surgical procedure on her windpipe, Ms Vibha stated.

However at PMCH, the kid's uncle stated, they confronted a delay in admission whereas the kid waited within the ambulance.

"They [the hospital staff] made us run round for 4 hours from one hospital division to a different one," he alleged. She was later admitted to the gynaecology division, he stated.

The hospital has denied the allegations. IS Thakur, a high hospital official, stated that the kid's household had initially admitted her to the paediatrics division however that she was despatched to the Ear, Nostril and Throat (ENT) division due to her accidents.

"Since we should not have an ICU in ENT, the kid was shifted to the ICU of the gynaecology division," he stated, including that the kid was introduced in an Advance Life Help ambulance, which is supplied to supply vital care.

"The allegations of a delay in getting a hospital mattress are baseless," Mr Thakur stated.

<img sizes="(min-width: 1280px) 50vw, (min-width: 1008px) 66vw, 96vw" srcset="https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/240/cpsprodpb/e513/live/197b5f20-4037-11f0-8ad4-f91adf6113fc.jpg.webp 240w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/320/cpsprodpb/e513/live/197b5f20-4037-11f0-8ad4-f91adf6113fc.jpg.webp 320w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/480/cpsprodpb/e513/live/197b5f20-4037-11f0-8ad4-f91adf6113fc.jpg.webp 480w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/640/cpsprodpb/e513/live/197b5f20-4037-11f0-8ad4-f91adf6113fc.jpg.webp 640w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/800/cpsprodpb/e513/live/197b5f20-4037-11f0-8ad4-f91adf6113fc.jpg.webp 800w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/1024/cpsprodpb/e513/live/197b5f20-4037-11f0-8ad4-f91adf6113fc.jpg.webp 1024w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/1536/cpsprodpb/e513/live/197b5f20-4037-11f0-8ad4-f91adf6113fc.jpg.webp 1536w" src="https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/480/cpsprodpb/e513/live/197b5f20-4037-11f0-8ad4-f91adf6113fc.jpg.webp" loading="lazy" alt="Getty Images Bihar Congress state president Rajesh Ram with party supporters demonstrating with effigies of Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and Bihar Health Minister Mangal pandey during protest against death of minor rape girl during treatment at PMCH on June 1, 2025 in Patna, India." class="sc-d1200759-0 dvfjxj"/> Getty Pictures Congress staff protesting in opposition to the kid's demise on Sunday

The kid's plight started making information after a viral video confirmed members of the opposition Congress social gathering arguing with hospital employees, demanding that she be admitted.

Opposition events within the state have held a number of protests for the reason that demise.

Congress chief Rahul Gandhi stated that the lady's demise was "extraordinarily shameful" and demanded that strict motion be taken in opposition to negligent officers.

"The rape sufferer waited for hours exterior PMCH to be admitted... what's the usage of the massive buildings being constructed within the identify of hospitals when there may be chaos, corruption, misbehaviour, lack of sources and insensitivity throughout?" the state's primary opposition social gathering Rashtriya Janata Dal stated on X.

Leaders of the BJP and JD(U) have denied any negligence. Anamika Singh Patel, a BJP spokesperson, referred to as the lady's demise "unlucky".

"However I personally run a hospital and I do know that getting a mattress in a hospital is a course of which takes time. Folks in our authorities are working responsibly," she stated.

The incident has additionally introduced consideration to the situation of Bihar's medical infrastructure, months earlier than the state meeting election is because of be held.

Final month, a affected person at one other authorities hospital in Patna stated {that a} rat bit his toe whereas he was asleep. Hospital authorities had launched an investigation into the incident.

On Tuesday, in a scathing editorial titled Bihar's Disgrace, the Occasions of India newspaper highlighted the sorry state of hospitals within the state. It referenced a latest report that discovered that solely half of all ventilators in authorities hospitals had been practical and that capital Patna had only one authorities physician for 11,541 individuals. That ratio is far worse in rural areas.