The widow of a Kargil hero died in a private hospital in Sonipat, Haryana, after medical staff allegedly refused to admit her for not carrying her Aadhaar card, forcing the State government to order an inquiry into the matter on Saturday.
Health Minister Anil Vij told presspersons in Ambala that a Health Department team had been sent to Sonipat to collect the details of the incident.
“Shakuntala Devi (55), widow of Kargil war martyr Havaldar Laxman Dass, died on Thursday for want of medical care at a private hospital as it insisted on having the patient’s Aadhaar card,” her son Pawan Kumar Balyan said.
Mr. Balyan, a resident of Mahlana village in Sonipat, said his mother was suffering from a heart problem.
“I took her to the Ex-servicemen Contributory Health Scheme (ECHS) Hospital in Sonipat and got the referral slip for Tulip Hospital on Thursday,” he said. “At the counter of the hospital, the authorities asked me to give the Aadhaar card of my ailing mother so that she could be admitted for treatment. I told them that I have forgotten it,” Mr. Balyan said.
