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After four months of battling the baby swap slur, the SCB Medical College and Hospital on Friday was finally exonerated with DNA tests establishing Rashmita Mallick as the mother of Atmaja.
The report of the Central Forensic Science Laboratory (CFSL), Hyderabad, produced in the Orissa High Court, stated Rashmita Mallick cannot be excluded as the biological mother of the girl child, named Atmaja by the staff of the hospital, while she can be excluded as the biological mother of the other male child.
The report was submitted in a sealed cover in the court of Chief Justice V Gopalagowda and Justice S K Mishra, who after perusing it, held Rashmita as the mother of the abandoned Atmaja and directed the Mallick family to accept her and take her home from the SCBMCH by Saturday.
Now over four months old, Atamaja is in the care of the doctors and staff of the Neonatalogy and Obstetrics and Gynaecology wings of the SCBMCH. Refused to be accepted by the family of Sushant Mallick of Nischintakoili area of Cuttack district since her birth on March 30, Atmaja has been put up at the stepdown SNCU unit and has grown into a cheerful and bubbly little baby under continuous care and attention of the doctors, nurses and medical students. Sushant and his family alleged that the girl was not born to his wife Rashmita and that their baby was swapped by the staff of the O&G Department. He had gone on to file a petition in the Orissa High Court, which on April 24 had directed DNA tests to establish the parentage of the girl.
Serum samples of Atmaja and Rashmita, along with one Nirupama Mallick and her baby boy, were drawn and sent to the CSFL Hyderabad for DNA tests under the supervision of Registrar (Vigilance) of the Orissa High Court. Nirupama and her husband Sukanta had been made parties as male child was born to them around an hour before Rashmita.
With the hospital cleared of the blame, the doctors and staff have now called for exemplary action against the Mallick family for trying to disgrace the premier health institution of the State.
The baby swap allegations and the developments thereafter have created an atmosphere of distrust between patients and doctors and personnel of the O&G department. It has also set a bad precedent when disgruntled patients would go to court over false issues.
They are also contemplating to move the Government for recovery of costs of taking care of the baby girl for over four months from the family. They have also accused the family of making false allegations to disown the baby as it was a girl child.
“Even in the face of staff shortage, two staff were posted round-the-clock to attend and take care of the baby. Now that the allegations have been proved false, the family should be held accountable and all costs recovered from them”, said a doctor.
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