An 80-year-old man in Madhya Pradesh’s Shajapur area was tied to a bed in a hospital because he allegedly failed to make payments for his treatment, NDTV reported on Sunday. But the hospital has denied the allegation, claiming the man was having convulsions and was tied down so that he doesn’t hurt himself.
The man’s family alleged the incident took place after they failed to pay a fee of Rs 11,000 for his treatment at the City Hospital in Shajapur. “We had deposited a bill of Rs 5,000 at the time of admission but when the treatment took a few more days, we did not have the money to pay the bill,” his daughter told the channel.
The hospital, however, maintained that the man was shackled because he was suffering from an electrolyte imbalance. “He was having convulsions because of electrolyte imbalance,” an unidentified doctor said. “We tied him so that he could not hurt himself.”
The doctor claimed the hospital had waived off the man’s bill on “humanitarian grounds”.
Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan took cognizance of the matter and promised strict action against the hospital authorities. The Shajapur administration has also ordered an inquiry and has sent a police team to the hospital for investigation, the district collector told ANI.
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