Perform surgery or kill me, pleads prisoner

Perform surgery or kill me, pleads prisoner

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

25.04.2021

A 34-year-old remand prisoner staged a dharna in front of the Government Mohan Kumaramangalam Medical College in Salem, demanding that doctors perform a surgery to rectify his kidney-related problem immediately or subject him to mercy killing as the pain was unbearable.

According to a police source, S Ganapathy, a resident of Vellore district, was lodged in Salem Central Prison in connection with the murder of his mother-in-law in 2019.

He has been undergoing treatment at the government hospital for a kidney-related disease. While the judicial magistrate had granted him bail, none of his friends and relatives had come forward to provide surety and take him out of the prison.

Prison superintendent T Tamilselvan said, “Due to the difficulties in passing urine, Ganapathy had been using urinary catheter and undergoing treatment ever since he was lodged in the prison. About six months ago, he had refused to undergo a surgery in the government hospital to rectify his problem. He said he would undergo the surgery only in a private hospital. Now, amid the spike in Covid-19 cases, he wants to undergo the surgery.”

On Saturday morning, Ganapathy was taken to the government hospital after he complained of some irritation while urinating. Doctors, the source said, advised him to visit the hospital after a few weeks. “However, Ganapathy demanded that the doctors perform the surgery immediately. As the Covid-19 cases are increasing in the district, doctors have been performing only the surgeries that are emergency in nature. So, they refused to accept his demand.”

Suddenly, Ganapathy sat in front of the emergency ward of the hospital and refused to return to the person. He pleaded with the officials to take steps to perform the surgery immediately or kill him on compassionate grounds. However, officials pacified him and took him back to the prison.

Tamilselvan said, “Ganapathy’s health condition is good and stable.”

Meanwhile, the resident medical officer with the government hospital, Rani, refused to comment on the issue, stating medical details of a remand prison could not be shared.

FERVENT APPEAL: S Ganapathy in front of the emergency ward of Government Mohan Kumaramangalam Medical College on Saturday