Indian police arrest surgeon over botched sterilisations that killed 13 women

An Indian doctor who conducted mass sterilisations that killed 13 women has been arrested, after saying he was being made a scapegoat for a controversial family planning scheme. R. K. Gupta was taken into custody as anger mounted over the botched operations in central Chhattisgarh state, where women were paid to undergo a procedure that also left dozens in hospital, police said Thursday. Gupta operated on 83 women in just five hours - spending an average of less than four minutes on each patient - at a state-run camp in Bilaspur district at the weekend.

After the arrest, he was produced before the jail of the court today and has been remanded to judicial custody for 15 days.

Police inspector general Pawan Deo

Gupta said the government was wrongly accusing him and blamed the drugs that were used during the surgery, as activists called for India’s family planning scheme to be overhauled. As he was being taken into custody he said: “This is all because of the drugs, the drugs given to the patients. The symptoms developed only after they were given the drugs. Almost all the patients are complaining now of how they started vomiting within 10 to 15 minutes of having the drugs.” Although no cause of death has officially been given, authorities speculated that the women had died of septic shock.

I have done so many operations before this and there have never been any problems. They (administration) are putting the blame on me.

Arrested doctor R. K. Gupta

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