Shreya Gupta
On 23rd May 2025, the Allahabad High Court took serious note of the deplorable condition of the State-run Swaroop Rani Nehru Hospital in Prayagraj. The Court observed that the hospital was in a pathetic state. It also exposed a disturbing nexus between the hospital staff and private medical mafias. Poor patients were being misled and diverted to private clinics by touts working under this nexus.
Justice Rohit Ranjan Agarwal observed while adjudicating a case initially arising from a consumer forum complaint, that poor patients were being deliberately misled and diverted by touts—allegedly operating under the influence of private medical mafias—from the Government hospital to private clinics owned by the very doctors employed in public service.
The case stemmed from a scenario where a doctor at Swaroop Rani Nehru Hospital had treated a patient in his private facility, prompting both the District and State Consumer Forums to pass adverse orders against him, which the doctor then challenged in the High Court. During the proceedings, it was revealed that a related special appeal had been converted into a Public Interest Litigation (PIL), prompting the Court to demand accountability from the Uttar Pradesh Government regarding the legality of Government doctors engaging in private practice.
The Government, in response, acknowledged that several doctors had been suspended and proceedings were initiated. However, the Court found the hospital’s affidavit unsatisfactory, as it painted an unrealistically positive picture. Consequently, two lawyers were appointed as amicus curiae, whose interim report revealed severe infrastructural and administrative failures within the hospital.
Based on this report, the Court summoned top city officials including the District Magistrate, Municipal Commissioner, Chief Medical Officer, and senior hospital administrators. During the hearings, the Superintendent In Charge of the hospital admitted to rampant absenteeism among doctors, the failure of basic infrastructure like non-functional fans and air conditioners (due to stolen copper pipes), and irregular operations of the Jan Aushadhi Kendra. Shockingly, out of five X-ray machines, only two were operational despite full maintenance charges being paid. The same applied to the ultrasound equipment and the radiology department.
The Court expressed outrage at the findings, going so far as to call the hospital a “mortuary” rather than a healthcare facility. It held that there was a prima facie case of collusion between private healthcare mafias and Government medical officers, which had effectively crippled public health infrastructure in Prayagraj. It also condemned the negligence of Government officials, criticizing them for failing to uphold their responsibilities to ensure proper medical care.
Emphasizing the gravity of the situation, the Court issued a series of directions: the Municipal Commissioner was ordered to clean the hospital premises and sewage system within 48 hours; the hospital administration was directed to publish doctors’ OPD schedules in newspapers and provide the list to the District Magistrate; and a monitoring team was to be constituted to identify and act against doctors engaging in unauthorized private practice. Additionally, the Court sought regulation over unauthorized commercial activities such as weddings and shops within the hospital campus.
An interim compliance report is to be submitted before the Court by 29th May 2025.
Case Title: Dr Arvind Gupta v. President And Member State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission Uttar Pradesh
Case Number: WRIT – C No. – 28694 of 2024
Bench: Justice Rohit Ranjan Agarwal
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