The scene of cremating the bodies of COVID-19 victims at an open-air crematorium in New Delhi, the capital of India, on the 24th of last month. [Image source=Yonhap News]
[Asia Economy Reporter Kim So-young] It has recently come to light that a patient hospitalized in India after testing positive for COVID-19 was sexually assaulted by a male nurse, her condition worsened, and she ultimately died, sparking public outrage.
According to local media such as NDTV and The Times of India on the 16th, a 43-year-old woman who was admitted to Bhopal Disaster Memorial Hospital on the 6th of last month due to COVID-19 was sexually assaulted by a male nurse named Santosiahir Wa (40) shortly after admission and later died. The victim’s condition rapidly deteriorated after the assault, and she was moved to the intensive care unit, but she passed away on the 7th of last month, less than 24 hours after the incident.
The victim disclosed the sexual assault to her attending physician, and the arrested nurse is currently detained at Bhopal Central Jail awaiting trial.
It was also revealed that the woman was a survivor of the "Bhopal Gas Tragedy," which added to the sorrow of many. The Bhopal Gas Tragedy was a toxic gas leak accident that occurred in December 1984 at the pesticide plant of the American multinational company Union Carbide, resulting in approximately 30,000 deaths, 150,000 injuries, and around 500,000 people showing symptoms of gas poisoning, making it one of the worst industrial disasters in history.
Meanwhile, the victim’s family was completely unaware of the assault even a month after the funeral. The hospital, based on the victim’s statement, apprehended the 40-year-old male nurse immediately after her death and handed him over to the police but did not inform the family of this fact. The police also did not notify the family of the death for over a month, causing controversy. Later, a police official explained, "The victim requested identity protection, so the case was not made public."
The Bhopal Disaster Victims Association stated, "The reason the victim’s family was unaware of the incident until now is because the hospital took every action to conceal this heinous crime," and urged, "Install closed-circuit television (CCTV) in all COVID-19 wards and make it mandatory to check for prior sexual offense records when hiring staff."
According to local media, sexual assault cases targeting COVID-19 patients or their families have been ongoing recently. On the 11th, at a private hospital in Patna, Bihar, medical staff sexually assaulted the wife of a COVID-19 patient. The victim testified, "A nursing assistant in the COVID ward put his hand inside my clothes and touched my buttocks in front of my lying husband."
On the 28th of last month, medical staff at a COVID-19 ward in Rajkot, Gujarat, sexually assaulted a woman in her 60s who was hospitalized with respiratory distress due to COVID complications. The victim testified, "In the early hours, a man who appeared to be medical staff approached me, asked about my condition, turned off the lights, gagged me, and raped me. He watched over me until morning."
Earlier, on the 27th of last month, a group was arrested by police in Patna, Bihar, for luring a young girl to an abandoned house under the pretense of "administering a vaccine" and sexually assaulting her.
On September 7th last year, a young woman infected with COVID-19 was sexually assaulted by an ambulance driver while being transported to the hospital, shocking the entire nation. KK Shailaja, Kerala’s Health Minister, stated, "A brutal crime occurred," and added, "We have taken action against the company operating the ambulance service." The Kerala State Human Rights Commission and Women’s Commission have urged, "Special protection is necessary for female patients during hospital transport."
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