Five held for conducting fatal abortion

By Kapil Gyawali, Rupandehi, April 22: Five individuals including two physicians have been arrested for conducting unsafe abortion that resulted in the death of a pregnant woman in Butwal.

The police held two doctors on Wednesday in addition to three chemists taken under control on Tuesday following registration of case by relatives of Gita Pande, a pregnant woman who died during abortion process.

The police today arrested Dr. DB Khatri, operator of Khatri Nursing Home and Dr. Satish Rupakheti of Indulekha Health Institution Pvt Ltd.

Earlier, the police had arrested Khagendra Prasad Pande, proprietor of Indulekh Health Institution, Sandhya Basnet of Zonal Pharmacy and Nilam Gharti Magar.

With pregnancy of 12 weeks, Pande had reached Butwal-based Khatri Nursing Home on April 18. Her husband Prakash Pande was accompanying her. Khatri medical, however, referred her to Zonal Pharmacy and thereafter she was taken to Indulekha Clinic where she breathed her last.

Gita's husband Prakash registered a named complaint at the Area Police Office in Butwal charging that his wife died due to negligence in abortion as she was referred from one to another clinic in the course.

Relatives of the deceased have padlocked Kalikapath-based Khatri Nursing Home, Indulekha Clinic and Zonal Pharmacy while they also blocked for a short time the east west highway at Chauraha in Butwal.

The body of the deceased has been kept at the Lumbini Provincial Hospital and further investigation into the incident is underway, according to the Butwal Area Police Office.