Hours before Kalpana Mishra died, shortly after giving birth to her first child at a government hospital in Madhya Pradesh’s Rewa, she pleaded with her family to take her home. “If this kind of treatment continues, these people will kill me,” the 25-year-old is purportedly heard saying in a video recorded inside the hospital. “I won’t survive. Please save me, my life is in danger.”

Within hours, Kalpana and her newborn were dead.

As the family tries to make sense of her death, the hospital has said she had not undergone necessary check-ups during her pregnancy and that her blood pressure and heart rate had spiked. A formal inquiry has been ordered into the death.

In videos from her final hours, she appears distressed, repeatedly reaching towards relatives as hospital staff try to stop her from leaving.

Story continues below this ad

Kalpana, a resident of Hatwa in Rewa district, was admitted to Sanjay Gandhi Memorial Hospital on the night of August 25.

She underwent a C-section around 8.30 pm on August 26 and delivered a baby. According to her relatives, her condition subsequently deteriorated, and she died while undergoing treatment on Thursday. The newborn did not survive either.

Her father, Ramsharan Mishra, claimed he repeatedly asked doctors to examine Kalpana and keep a closer watch on her condition, but she was not given adequate care.

“Kalpana was my only daughter… Today, she has left us. The police must register an FIR against those responsible. The doctor on duty and the staff should be suspended. Before her death, she told me, ‘Papa, save me. These people will kill me’,” he claimed.

Story continues below this ad

Hospital Superintendent Dr Rahul Mishra said Kalpana had not undergone the recommended number of antenatal check-ups. “The incident is unfortunate. The family made a very serious lapse. As per protocol, a pregnant woman should undergo at least eight examinations. Looking at her documents, we found that she had been examined only twice, and both examinations were done at a private hospital. Because her blood pressure and heart rate increased, Kalpana lost consciousness,” he said.

Mishra described the deaths as tragic and said the question of why Kalpana did not regain consciousness would form part of the investigation. “A high-level inquiry committee has been constituted, and two nursing officers have been suspended. This is a medical matter. Why the patient did not regain consciousness is a subject of investigation, and action will be taken against whoever is found responsible based on the inquiry’s findings,” he said.

He rejected the allegation that doctors had been negligent. “The woman was treated according to medical protocols. There was no negligence on the part of the doctors. However, inquiries are underway into the family’s allegations. The body has been handed over to the family following the post-mortem,” he said.