'My Sister Died Due to a Wrong Injection – And We're Still Fighting For Justice'

'As soon as Simran was administered a Dynapar injection, she collapsed and started frothing from the mouth.'

Simran Chhabra died in front of her brother's eyes after she was administered with an injection at a hospital in Gurugram.

(Image altered by The Quint/Kamran Akhter)

Video Producer: Maaz Hasan
Cameraperson: Athar Rather
Video Editor: Nitin Bisht

What would your life be like if your young sister, suffering from minor cough and cold, died in front of you due to medical negligence, leaving you to run from pillar to post for justice?

If you know the answer, then you can understand what we've been going through for close to two years.

On 19 January 2023, I had chest congestion, for which I visited Jagdamba Hospital in Old Gurugram. Two days later, I was scheduled to go again for a follow-up check. Right before I was leaving, my dad told me that Simran, my younger sister, was also complaining of cough and cold – and that I should take her along.

We arrived at the hospital at around 1 pm. When the doctor asked, I told him that Simran had been complaining of cough and cold. During the vitals check-up, her body temperature was 98.4°F. The doctor called a nurse and wrote a note on a slip for an injection that needed to be administered to her. It was a Dynapar injection, a pain-relieving medicine.

A vial of Dynapar AQ.

(Accessed by The Quint)

'What Happened Next Was Completely Expected'

As soon as the nurse gave her the injection, Simran said, "What have you done? You have given me a wrong injection. I have itching all over my body." She asked the nurse to stop, but the nurse replied, "You are overreacting. It's not a big deal."

As soon as the injection was fully administered, Simran collapsed on the bed and started frothing from her mouth.

'An Emergency I Wasn't Prepared For'

When the doctor returned to the room, he asked me to leave the room. I was just about to sit in the seating area outside the room when a hospital staff member came out and asked me to quickly arrange a vehicle. 

I asked him, "What happened? Everything was fine when we arrived on the scooter. Now, you’re suddenly asking me to arrange a vehicle. What's the emergency?" He said nothing, just asked me again to call for a vehicle and went back into the room.

Since there was no ambulance at the hospital, I asked the doctor to help arrange a vehicle because it would take time for me to get my own from our home. The doctor arranged for a car from the neighbourhood – and we took Simran to Aryan Hospital.

At 1:31 pm, we left from Jagdamba Hospital, and by 1:35 pm, we arrived at Aryan Hospital. At Aryan Hospital, they conducted an ECG and declared that Simran had been 'brought dead'.

As per procedure, Aryan Hospital informed the police, since it was the death of a young girl – and a post-mortem was mandatory.

'Not A Single Day Passes Without Her Thoughts'

From that day in January 2023 till today, the incident haunts us. Simran was a student of MA in Economics at Amity University, where she scored 96% in her last exam – the results of which came out after her untimely death.

A research paper she had written was approved, and if she was alive today, she'd certainly have received a scholarship to pursue a PhD at a college in Germany or Ireland. This was her dream.

'Our Fight For Justice'

But even to this day, no FIR has been registered in the case. We chased the police and the administration. We even wrote letters to all the office-bearers – from the Haryana Chief Minister and Health Minister to the District Magistrate, and even the Prime Minister.

In June 2023, we got a response from Nishant Yadav, the District Magistrate of Gurugram, notifying us that a District Medical Board for Negligence had been set up in Simran's case.

Both Dr Rohit Lalit, the doctor who treated Simran, and I recorded our statements with the board.

Dr Rohit Lalit's statement, the doctor who treated Simran, with the District Medical Negligence Board.

(Accessed by The Quint)

Sourabh Chhabra's statement recorded with the District Medical Negligence Board.

(Accessed by The Quint)

On 26 June 2023, the board gave a clean chit to Dr Lalit without considering the loophole in the statement made by the doctor.

'The Doctor's Statement Contradicts Post-Mortem And Police Reports'

Nishant Bharihoke, our lawyer, has raised some serious questions that we need the answers to.

"The first question that arises is: why was she given a Dynapar injection? Dynapar is typically administered when the pain is unbearable, usually post-surgery," says Bharihoke.

Troika's statement, the company that manufactures Dynapar AQ injection.

(Accessed by The Quint)

"This girl went to the hospital on a scooter with her brother, so by no stretch of the imagination was she suffering from such unbearable pain that she would have died without immediate relief. Then why was she given an intravenous injection?" asks the advocate.

As per the statement of the doctor, he gave her six injections along with fluid rush. How were these six injections given to her? Via Cannula? As per the written statement of Aryan Hospital, there was no Cannula found in her body.

The statement of the doctor who attended to Simran when she was taken to Aryan Hospital.

(Accessed by The Quint)

Were these injections given directly into her body? It can't be true because, in the post-mortem report, only two puncture holes were found in her body.

Simran's post-mortem report.

(Accessed by The Quint)

The doctor also claimed to have intubated her, which means an L-shaped tube was inserted through her mouth into her trachea, and she was oxygenated using an Ambu bag connected to an oxygen cylinder. Aryan Hospital says there was no endotracheal tube found in her body. 

Also, the timeline mentioned by the treating doctor doesn't add up.

"Simran arrived at the hospital at 12:53 pm. At least 5-10 minutes would have lapsed while the doctor assessed her condition, completed registration, paid fees, and possibly waited briefly. Therefore, she could not have received the injection before 1 pm. The doctor stated that they first gave a slow injection, waited 1-2 minutes, and then infused the complete injection over 30-40 minutes. My simple question is – by that time, Simran was already dead. So where were these injections given? In a dead body? That too which was at Aryan Hospital? Now, don't you think that the medical negligence board should have raised these points there and then when this statement was being made?"

Nishant Bharihoke, Simran's Lawyer

After not getting support from anywhere, we knocked on the doors of the court. On 4 September 2024, reviewing our complaint, the Judicial Magistrate found "sufficient material" against the doctor and has summoned him to face trial.

Order of the Judicial Magistrate on the complaint filed by Sourabh Chhabra.

(Accessed by The Quint)

It has been close to two years since we started fighting for justice, knocking on one door after another. I just want to request the administration to not delay the case any longer. Please have it fast-tracked through the court and bring it to a resolution.

The Quint has reached out to Dr Virendra Yadav, the Civil Surgeon of Gurugram, on the questions raised over the report submitted by the District Medical Board For Negligence. We are yet to get a response from him.

The Quint has also reached out to Varun Dahiya, ACP Gurugram, to inquire about the investigation in the case. "I am not authorised to say anything about this case. We have submitted our enquiry report to the court and since the matter is in court, I can't comment," said Dahiya.

The Quint also reached out to Dr Rohit Lalit at Jagdamba Hospital in Gurugram. Both calls and messages to him have gone unanswered. We have also emailed him to get his side of the story. This My Report will be updated as and when we receive a response.

(All 'My Report' branded stories are submitted by citizen journalists to The Quint. Though The Quint inquires into the claims/allegations from all parties before publishing, the report and the views expressed above are the citizen journalist's own. The Quint neither endorses, nor is responsible for the same.)