2 min readNew DelhiUpdated: Nov 17, 2023 09:21 AM IST
Holding the clinic that operated the complainant guilty, the NCDRC said there was no evidence that she had undergone any other surgery. (Representational Photo)
National Consumer Commission upholds Rs 14 lakh compensation to woman who found nuts and bolts inside her body after surgery
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The National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (NCDRC) on Thursday upheld Rs. 13.77 lakh compensation to a woman who found nuts and bolts in her body 12 years after she underwent a hysterectomy at a nursing home in Puducherry.
Following the ruling of the State Consumer Commission, the clinic had filed an appeal in the NCDRC.
“…. the unbearable pain, suffering, and hardship she had undergone and the sleepless nights and inability she faced in performing her day-to-day routine work as a housewife to render valuable service to her husband and her children. In addition, she suffered financial loss during the relevant period,” NCDRC members Sudip Ahluwalia and J Rajendra said while upholding the previous order of the State Consumer Commission.
“While the complainant did not produce any documents in respect of financial losses caused to her towards her treatment for 12 years and other losses due to erroneous and negligent operation performed by the OPs, she deserves to be appropriately compensated,” they added.
Holding the clinic that operated the complainant guilty, the NCDRC said there was no evidence that she had undergone any other surgery.
After surgery in 1991, the complainant alleged that she faced many health issues like dizziness, shivering, chronic headaches, stomach aches, and urinary tract infections. Six years later, she consulted a renowned urologist in Puducherry who told her that there was a butterfly-shaped object inside her.
In 2003, she underwent another surgery which identified the foreign objects left inside her body due to the operation in 1991 as ‘nut and bolt’.
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Advocates Senthil Jagadeeshan and Sajal Jain, representing the clinic, argued that the complainant provided no evidence in Court against the clinic. They further flagged the 12-year delay calling the complaint time barred.
“In 1997, the complainant sought medical help from Dr Janarthanan and underwent a kidney X-ray, which revealed a ‘butterfly-shaped object’. However, the doctor did not provide appropriate guidance, leading to the complainant being completely uninformed about the presence of foreign objects…Therefore, clearly, the existence of the foreign body (bolt and nut) inside the body of the complainant was found and confirmed during October 2003 and was removed on 10.12.2003,” noted the commission rejecting the clinic’s arguments.
Nirbhay Thakur is a Senior Correspondent with The Indian Express who primarily covers district courts in Delhi and has reported on the trials of many high-profile cases since 2023.
Professional Background
Education: Nirbhay is an economics graduate from Delhi University.
Beats: His reporting spans the trial courts, and he occasionally interviews ambassadors and has a keen interest in doing data stories.
Specializations: He has a specific interest in data stories related to courts.
Core Strength: Nirbhay is known for tracking long-running legal sagas and providing meticulous updates on high-profile criminal trials.
Recent notable articles
In 2025, he has written long form articles and two investigations. Along with breaking many court stories, he has also done various exclusive stories.
1) A long form on Surender Koli, accused in the Nithari serial killings of 2006. He was acquitted after spending 2 decades in jail. was a branded man. Deemed the “cannibal" who allegedly lured children to his employer’s house in Noida, murdered them, and “ate their flesh” – his actions cited were cited as evidence of human depravity at its worst. However, the SC acquitted him finding various lapses in the investigation. The Indian Express spoke to his lawyers and traced the 2 decades journey.
2) For decades, the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) has been at the forefront of the Government’s national rankings, placed at No. 2 over the past two years alone. It has also been the crucible of campus activism, its protests often spilling into national debates, its student leaders going on to become the faces and voices of political parties of all hues and thoughts. The Indian Express looked at all court cases spanning over two decades and did an investigation.
3) Investigation on the 700 Delhi riots cases. The Indian Express found that in 17 of 93 acquittals (which amounted to 85% of the decided cases) in Delhi riots cases, courts red-flag ‘fabricated’ evidence and pulled up the police.
Signature Style
Nirbhay’s writing is characterized by its procedural depth. He excels at summarizing 400-page chargesheets and complex court orders into digestible news for the general public.
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