When then Bhiwani SDM,Yogesh Bhardwaj came to rescue Dr Shiv Kant of Bhiwani (brother of now Chief Justice of Supreme Court Justice Suryakant )
Gustakhi Maaf Haryana-Pawan Kumar Bansal
When then Bhiwani SDM,Yogesh Bhardwaj came to rescue of Dr Shiv Kant renowned TB specialist at Bhiwani (brother of now Chief Justice of Supreme Court Sh Suryakant .
Recall Bhardwaj now after retirement settled in Gurugram “The incident took place in August 2001, when I was posted as the SDM of Bhiwani. I had been suffering from back pain for some time and was on bed rest, working from the government residence itself. One night, around 9:30 p.m., a group of doctors from Bhiwani city came to meet me. The group included Dr. Shiv Shankar Bhardwaj, a well-known surgeon of the city who later, in 2005, became an MLA from the Congress Party; Dr. Shiv Kant, a renowned tuberculosis specialist; Dr. Kajal, who was very close to the then Chief Minister; Dr. Arora, and several other office-bearers of the District Medical Association.
They came to share their distress. They told me that two days earlier, an outdoor patient of Dr. Shiv Kant—a migrant from Bihar—collapsed and died on the roadside immediately after taking his medicines and stepping out of the clinic. As soon as a crowd gathered and the doctor was informed, he examined the patient, found him dead, and out of humanity had the body brought to his hospital and immediately informed the police. However, the police took no action. Instead, they told him: “He was your patient, you find his relatives yourself and hand over the body to them.”
Dr. Shiv Kant tried to locate the man’s acquaintances in the labor colonies of the city, but no one recognized him. The office-bearers of the District Medical Association then approached, in order, the area SHO Mr. Gulati, the Deputy Superintendent of Police Mr. Dahiya, and the then Superintendent of Police Mrs. Suman Manjari, but all of them refused to take police action. Even the then Deputy Commissioner, Mr. S. K. Joshi, expressed his inability to help. The police authorities maintained that since it was “your patient,” the doctor himself should cremate the body—which would have been illegal.
When I heard all this, I was greatly surprised. Coming from a legal background—having served as a government lawyer—I immediately had them write an application addressed to the Sub-Divisional Magistrate. On that application, I personally issued strict orders to SHO Civil Lines, Mr. Gulati, directing him to immediately take the body into custody, prepare the panchnama, conduct the post-mortem, issue public notices in the surrounding areas regarding the deceased, and—as required under law—have the body cremated with the assistance of the Municipal Council within the stipulated period. I also gave him oral instructions over the phone. Although the SHO cited the Superintendent of Police, I informed him that my orders were in my capacity as Magistrate, and failure to comply would create serious problems for him.
The SHO had no option but to act immediately, and Dr. Shiv Kant’s problem was resolved.
It is worth noting that Dr. Shiv Kant’s younger brother, the respected Mr. Surya Kant—now appointed as the Chief Justice of India—was at that time the Advocate General of the Haryana Government. Coincidentally, Dr. Shiv Shankar Bhardwaj was elected MLA from Bhiwani in 2005, and influenced by this incident, he had me re-appointed as the SDM of Bhiwani in May 2005 during the Hooda Government.