CCTV catches doc trying to pull plug off her dad in ICU

CHENNAI: The Chennai police have chargesheeted a woman doctor for trying to kill her 82-year-old father -a heart patient on medical support in an ICU ­ by pulling the plug after getting his thumb impression on a set of papers. The act was caught on a CCTV camera.

The incident happened last September, and the man died two months later.Though the man's son, also a doctor, filed a complaint soon after the incident, an FIR was filed only in January, 2016.

A chargesheet was filed recently , booking Dr Jayasudha Manoharan for attempt to murder.

The CCTV footage, seen by TOI, shows Dr Jayasudha, visiting her father in her brother Dr R Jayaprakash's Aditya Hospital in Kilpauk, Chennai, removing the line delivering life-saving medicines through a vein in the neck. As nurses and a doctor rush in, she says something and rushes out, with the hospital staff running behind her.

In February this year, Dr Jayaprakash lodged a complaint with the Tamil Nadu State Medical Council alleging that Dr Jayasudha, her husband Dr U Manoharan and their son Dr Hari Prasad tried to kill his father Dr E Rajagopal. He demanded that they be removed from the medical rolls. Dr Jayasudha's family owns Manoharan Hos pital in R S Puram, Coimbatore. Dr Jayaprakash sent unedited and edited versions of the CCTV footage along with a copy of the FIR filed by the city police in January. Police initially filed cases of trespassing, extortion and criminal intimidation against the family , but later altered them to attempt to murder in the chargesheet.

G3 police inspector Thiyagarajan said, “When we first got the complaint we thought it was sibling rivalry and extortion case. Further inquiries revealed there was an attempt to murder.“

In his complaint to the council, Dr Jayaprakash said the September 5, 2015 incident led to a gradual decline in his father's health and he died on November 2, 2015.“My father was just off the ventilator. His blood pressure had plummeted and we used a central line to supply drugs to maintain his blood pressure.This line should not be pulled out. Jayasudha took my father's thumb impression, wiped the ink from his fingers and unscrewed the IV line so he did not get the lifesaving drug. There was slow but steady reverse flow of the blood. The ICU nurses caught it just on time to save him,“ said Dr Jayaprakash. “When my father was still in hospital he told police he was threatened by his daughter.“

The state medical council, which asked Dr Jayasudha and her family to appear before a committee on July 22, said it would hold an independent inquiry to find out if they misused their medical knowledge. “We were not satisfied with their written explanation, so we asked them to appear for an inquiry . They sought more time to prepare an explanation and we have given it,“ said council president Dr K Senthil. If Dr Jayasudha and her family are proven guilty, they will face action, including suspension for misconduct, he said.

When TOI contacted Dr Jayasudha in Coimbatore, Dr Manoharan answered and said, “Our family will not comment on this. It's legal matter and it's between the