A doctor couple in Aligarh, performing a pre-natal sex determination test, could not be taken into police custody because of the alleged ‘interference’ by two local Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLAs, reported The Indian Express.
Dr Jayant Sharma and his wife, Divya Chaudhary, were conducting the test on a pregnant woman, who was deliberately sent by the Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (PCPNDT) cell of Rajasthan government to nail the doctors, when they were caught on Monday, 16 October, The Indian Express reported.
While the wife fled from the hospital, Jayant was brought to the local police station along with the ultrasound machine.
Two local MLAs, Sanjeev Raja and Anil Parashar, allegedly kept interfering in the arrest of the doctors, despite repeated requests by officials, including Aligarh District Magistrate, to let the Rajasthan police do their job.
The Indian Express report said the MLAs waited at the police station till Sharma was allowed to leave later in the night.
We apprised senior officers in the government regarding the local public representatives interfering in the legal matter. We tried to convince the MLAs to allow the legal procedure, but they refused to listen.District Magistrate of Aligarh Rishikesh Bhaskar Yashod told The Indian Express
Sharma completely denied the allegations and said the Rajasthan team forcibly seized the ultrasound machine and digital video recorder from his clinic, Jeevan Nursing Home.
Nothing illegal happened and public representatives reached after hearing about the matter. I was let go from the police station around 2 am and no action was initiated against me… I am a surgeon and the owner of the hospital, while my wife is a gynaecologist.Dr Jayant Sharma
While MLA Sanjeev Raja said no such illegal test was being performed in Aligarh, Anil Parashar told The Indian Express:
We (he and MLA Sanjeev Raja) reached the police station to ensure that the doctor is not framed in a false case. The Rajasthan team had already sealed the ultrasound machine and the DVR, and they should have first probed if the test was conducted. How could they arrest the doctor?
Naveen Jain, IAS, and Appropriate Authority of PCPNDT Cell in Rajasthan, told TIE that his team would procure an arrest warrant against the doctors and they, along with three others who were involved in the case, will be produced in court on Thursday, 19 October.
(Breathe In, Breathe Out: Are you finding it tough to breathe polluted air? Join hands with FIT in partnership with #MyRightToBreathe to find a solution to pollution. Send in your suggestions to fit@thequint.com or WhatsApp @ +919999008335)
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)