The incident has triggered public criticism, forcing the local administration to set up a committee to look into the conduct of the doctors.
Doctors suspended
The District Collector for Jhunjhunu, Ramavtar Meena, said the preliminary investigation revealed that the doctors had not conducted a post-mortem examination, which they were supposed to do. Instead, they completed the formalities on paper and sent the man straight for cremation.
“Pending inquiry, we have suspended the three doctors for gross misconduct and dereliction of their duties,” Meena said.
The suspended doctors have been identified as Yogesh Jhkhar, Navneet Meel and Sandeep Prachar.
Dr Dheeraj Maheshwari, a forensic expert, said, “In India’s peripheral areas, most doctors don’t even perform post-mortems, but still provide a cause of death certificate. Ultimately, the body is cremated, leaving no proof of whether a proper post-mortem was done or not.”
Lack of necessary autopsy training
He added that medical officers in India lack the necessary training to conduct autopsies.
“There is no standardisation or proper audits to ensure post-mortems are performed correctly,” he said.
“Inadequate post-mortem procedures are carried out in almost every public health centre and community health centre. This severely undermines the authenticity of conducting autopsies.
“The man was placed in a deep freezer, which induced a state of suspended animation. In this state, the body’s metabolic functions slow down significantly, making it difficult to detect signs of life or ascertain the exact cause of apparent death.”