Charity Commissioner orders criminal case against hospital

Maharashtra Charity Commissioner Shivkumar Dige has ordered filing of a criminal case against the trustees of Mumbai-based Nanavati Hospital for allegedly denying treatment to patients from underprivileged classes.
"Dige has asked the assistant charity commissioner to file a criminal case against the trustees as it violated a provision of the Bombay Public Trusts Act, 1950," an official in the Charity Commissioner's office told PTI today.
"An inquiry revealed that the hospital does not provide treatment to poor patients as mandated under the law," the official said.
The directive is part of a drive against charitable hospitals found to be making insufficient arrangements for deprived patients despite having a 'charitable trust' status and availing government concessions, he said.

Dige had issued a show-cause notice to the hospital for violating the provisions of the Act which aim at providing free or concessional-rate health services to poor patients, the official said.
A decoy poor patient who went to the hospital was denied treatment, he said. "What was surprising was that even the receptionist at the hospital wasn't aware of the provision for treatment of poor patients," he added.
Hospital authorities were not available for comment despite several attempts.
As per the rules, charitable hospitals have to reserve 20 per cent of beds for poor patients.