Lucknow: Woman dies during childbirth; Class 12 student, BA graduate held for illegal C-section

LUCKNOW: In a glaring example of medical negligence and quackery, the Ambedkar Nagar police on Friday arrested a class 12 student and an Arts graduate for allegedly conducting a caesarean surgery at an unregistered private hospital, resulting in the death of a woman during childbirth. Probe revealed the illegal hospital had been running for five years.

The accused were identified as Yogesh Verma (32), a BA graduate from Malipur, and Shubham Vishwakarma (19), an intermediate student from Sultanpur. The duo allegedly performed surgeries at Navjeevan Hospital in Baskhari without possessing any recognised medical degree or surgical qualification.


The deceased, Priyanka, was admitted to the hospital on February 5 for delivery.

According to police, the duo conducted a caesarean section, after which she delivered a baby girl. However, Priyanka allegedly suffered excessive bleeding and never regained consciousness following the administration of anaesthesia. As her condition deteriorated, she was referred to Lucknow, but she died.The incident triggered protests by the victim's family, after which the hospital operator, identified as Ruby, fled the spot and remains absconding. The police seized mobile phones linked to the case and launched efforts to trace her.

Baskhari SHO Sunil Kumar Pandey, who is leading the investigation, said that two so-called "doctors" were called in to conduct the surgery. "Yogesh Verma is only a graduate. His father worked as a ward boy at CHC Jalalpur, and he learned basic medical procedures while assisting him. He reportedly performed surgeries for several years," the SHO said.

The second accused, Shubham Vishwakarma, is associated with Bajrang Nursing Home in Belwai under Akhandnagar police station limits of Sultanpur district.

During questioning, he told police that he gained experience by observing procedures at a local hospital after completing his class 12. Both the accused allegedly arrived on call to conduct surgeries at Navjeevan Hospital, which had been operating for nearly 5 years.

Police sources revealed that the duo allegedly charged between Rs 3,000 and Rs 5,000 per caesarean operation—significantly lower than qualified surgeons—attracting poor patients seeking affordable treatment.

Following directions from the Chief Medical Officer, a joint inspection was conducted on the night of February 8 by the CHC superintendent, sub-divisional magistrate Tanda, and Baskhari police. During the inspection, officials found that the hospital operated illegally from four rooms of a residential building without any registration certificate, biomedical waste (BMW) authorisation, fire NOC, or required medical staff as per norms.

"No signboard displaying hospital registration details was found on the premises. Various medicines, surgical and medical equipment were recovered from the site. After preparing an inventory, authorities sealed all the four rooms in the presence of the SDM and police," said Dr Ajay Kumar, CHC superintendent.

An FIR was lodged on February 9 on the complaint of the CHC superintendent under relevant sections for the illegal operation of a hospital and medical negligence. Police said further investigation is on to identify other hospitals where the accused may have performed surgeries.

Authorities also ordered verification of all medical credentials linked to the hospital and warned of strict action against illegal healthcare establishments operating in the district.

Police said that Priyanka's husband Sandeep lodged another FIR under the charges of BNS 105 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder), and efforts are on to catch Ruby.