29-Year-Old Woman Dies After Visiting Multiple Nursing Homes and Clinics for Abortion
April 20, Butwal – A 29-year-old woman from Palpa lost her life after visiting four different health facilities to undergo an abortion. Gita Pandey, from Bagnaskali Rural Municipality-2 in Palpa, died during the process of seeking abortion services. She had been informed that her approximately 12-week-old fetus was unhealthy and had visited Khatri Nursing Home in Butwal’s Intabatti area with her husband on April 17. She was initially brought to Khatri Nursing Home on March 13 for tests. Dr. DB Khatri there had diagnosed an abnormal pregnancy and scheduled her for a follow-up on April 16.
On April 17, Gita returned to Khatri Nursing Home, which referred her with location details to the Zonal Pharmacy Clinic located on Butwal Hospital Line. According to her husband, Prakash Pandey, the pharmacy informed them that the abortion procedure would cost NPR 16,000 and took a NPR 2,000 advance before providing two types of medication. From there, they were directed to Indu Lekha Clinic for the abortion procedure, where Dr. Satish Rupakheti conducted the examination.
Prakash explained, “The Zonal Pharmacy gave two types of medicine. According to instructions, she took one pill in the evening and one in the morning. The next day, at the appointed time, we returned to the Zonal Pharmacy, where she was given another medication.” He added, “No consent forms were signed. They instructed us to rest at the pharmacy for two hours. After two hours, however, they took her via a back route to Indu Lekha Clinic. I was kept outside, so I don’t know what procedures were done inside.”
Prakash also said he did not see the aborted fetus. After Gita lost consciousness, she was taken without his knowledge to Lumbini City Hospital’s emergency department, where doctors declared her dead. Prakash accused the medical facilities of causing his wife’s death through gross negligence and profit-driven malpractice under the guise of treatment. He also accused the Zonal Pharmacy of hiding location cards and other medical reports.
“For financial gain, they colluded to perform an unauthorized abortion through a criminal conspiracy involving serious negligence. I demand justice,” Prakash said. “Since this death occurred due to medical negligence, I have filed a criminal complaint.”
He named Dr. DB Khatri and Dr. Satish Rupakheti as the primary accused and demanded their arrest and legal action. In addition, he filed complaints against Sandhya Basnet (operator of Zonal Pharmacy/Clinic), Nilam Gharti Magar (Zonal Pharmacy), and Khagendra Prasad Pandey (operator of Indu Lekha Health Clinic). Following the complaint, police arrested three individuals and have begun necessary investigations, said DSP Nishant Srivastava, head of the Butwal Police Station.
The arrested individuals include Sandhya Basnet, Nilam Gharti Magar, and Khagendra Pandey, all of whom are undergoing legal proceedings. Relatives of the deceased have shut down Khatri Nursing Home, Zonal Pharmacy, and Indu Lekha Clinic in protest. The deceased, Gita, was an employee at the Blood Transfusion Service Center in Bhairahawa.