Dr Naveen Khichi, the Director of Baby Care New Born Hospital which caught fire Saturday resulting in the death of six newborns, is not new to controversies with questions being raised regarding his work practices earlier too. According to Dr Girish Tyagi, Secretary, Delhi Medical Council (DMC), there was a complaint related to administrative issues against Khichi, which the DMC had referred to the DGHS for further investigation. In 2021, one of the nurses working at Dr Khichi’s another hospital — CARE — New Born & Child Hospital, also at Vivek Vihar — was accused of beating up a child admitted at the hospital. “CCTV footage collected by the investigating officer of the case, court records say, shows the nurse 'assaulting' the infant by 'tossing him in the air in the midst of the night'. The family of the child, who belonged to Hathras, had alleged that when they approached Khichi with a complaint against the nurse, he threatened them with dire consequences if they lodged a police complaint. Once the child was discharged from the hospital, his family admitted him at Hedgewar Hospital before lodging a complaint with the police,” said Dr Tyagi. Dr Khichi had moved anticipatory bail in the case. During the course of the court proceedings, a status report was filed by the state government that Khichi’s CARE - New Born & Child Hospital was not registered under Delhi Nursing Home Registration Act. Court documents reveal Dr Khichi told the court he had paid the fine for running a nursing home without requisite registration under Delhi Nursing Home Registration Act or The Clinical Establishments (Registration and Regulation) Act-2010. A resident of Delhi, Dr Khichi did his MBBS from Maulana Azad Medical College and later his MD from Lady Hardinge Medical College (LHMC) in 2007. A senior doctor from the department of paediatrics at LHMC said he was a fairly good resident back then, adding no complaints were heard against him at the time. An official from the Nursing Cell said Dr Khichi’s hospital had been running without a licence since March 31 this year after its registration expired. The registration was issued by the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS), Delhi government. The Health Services issues registration for three financial years. He said the hospital was a 5-bedded centre but Dr Khichi was admitting more than double the number of patients. Apart from Dr Khichi, there were three more doctors working at the hospital along with nursing and other staff members. According to the website of the hospital, the hospital has its centres in Faridabad, and Punjabi Bagh in West Delhi's Paschim Vihar.
