Fifty-one-year-old Rajbala, who suffered a crippling spinal injury during the pre-dawn police crackdown at Baba Ramdev's camp on the Ramlila Maidan here on June 5, died on Monday following cardiac arrest.
The Gurgaon resident, who was seriously injured in the police action while participating in the Baba Ramdev-led agitation against corruption, was undergoing treatment at G. B. Pant Hospital here.
Her daughter-in-law Rakesh Malik said: “After the police action, Rajbala called us to inform that she had been injured. We rushed to the hospital and she told us that the police had lathicharged her and several other people who had joined the protest.”
Cremation at Sonepat
“Her injury marks too clearly showed that force had been used. The hospital had been taking good care of her, but after her death, the hospital authorities refused to give us a death summary and other relevant papers, and even asked us to file an RTI application. We were harassed, but the hospital authorities later cooperated and handed over the body. The cremation will take place at our village in Sonepat on Tuesday,” said Ms. Malik.
Rajbala's son Amit Malik could not hide his anger. “The police force was used by politicians to end a protest against corruption. We have lost our mother who was a fighter and who raised her voice against atrocities. We hope we'll get justice”
A hospital statement said: “This [Monday] morning, Rajbala developed cardiac dysfunction leading to cardiac arrest. She did not respond to resuscitative efforts and was declared dead at 10.25 a.m. The patient was admitted on June 5 with post-traumatic fracture and dislocation of cervical C4 and C5 vertebrate with quadriplegia and respiratory irregularity, haemodynamic instability and bladder and bowel dysfunction.”
Critical from day one
“Rajbala was being treated for spinal injuries and her condition had been critical from day one. She also underwent surgery but had to be put on ventilator later. During the past three days, her condition deteriorated further,” said a senior health official at the hospital.
According to Special Commissioner of Police (Law and Order) Dharmendra Kumar, Rajbala had in a statement to the doctor attending on her said she sustained injuries during a stampede. “She was on the stage when the incident took place and that there was no lathi charge by the police.”
The police said Rajbala was suffering from osteoporosis, a brittle bone disease that leads to an increased risk of fracture. Her sons also gave an affidavit stating she sustained injuries when she was on the stage.
Ultimate sacrifice: Ramdev
Calling Rajbala's death the ‘ultimate sacrifice,' Baba Ramdev, in a statement, said it “is an irreparable loss to the whole organisation…..and her death will not go in vain. We will continue to fight for a corruption-free India.”
