HC seeks CCTV footage obtained from mortuaries in three govt. hospitals
The Hindu
Court wants to ascertain whether its earlier order has been complied with
In order to ascertain whether the State has complied with its earlier order with regard to installation of CCTV cameras in mortuaries and dissection halls, the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court has sought the footage from government hospitals in Madurai, Sivaganga and Tirunelveli.
A Division Bench of Justices S.S. Sundar and S. Srimathy sought the CCTV footage from Madurai Government Rajaji Hospital, Government Sivaganga Medical College and Hospital and Tirunelveli Medical College Hospital. The court was hearing a petition filed by the State seeking a modification of the order passed by it in 2020.
The State sought the modification of the order with regard to appointment of scientific officers in medical college hospitals in every district headquarters to enable the conduct of fair and proper post-mortems. The court had directed that the qualification, duties and the responsibilities of the scientific officers should be defined by the government.
The State could take the assistance of a committee consisting of experts in forensic science, criminology, medical examination and other fields, the court had said in 2020.
However, in its petition seeking the modification, the State submitted that the expert committee opined that appointment of scientific officers was not required in government medical college hospitals.
The post of scientific officers was not mentioned in the staff requirements of National Medical Council. Every district in Tamil Nadu had a Mobile Forensic Unit comprising scientific officers, who visited the scenes of crime and assisted police in the investigation of cases. They submitted reports to the investigating officers, the State said.
Post-mortems were conducted without the assistance of scientific officers and the presence of the scientific officers was not necessary during the process. They had no practical training in anatomy, the State said and submitted that the other directions issued by the court with regard to the conduct of post-mortems were being complied with. The court adjourned the hearing in the case by two weeks.