10-year old rape victim dies in India due to alleged hospital delay

The death of a 10-year-old rape victim in Bihar has triggered national outrage in India, with allegations of medical negligence intensifying political and public scrutiny ahead of upcoming state elections.

The girl, from the marginalised Dalit community, died at Patna Medical College and Hospital (PMCH) on Sunday morning.

According to Indian media reports, her uncle alleged she was forced to wait inside an ambulance for nearly four hours on Saturday before being admitted—claims denied by hospital authorities.

Officials at PMCH, Bihar’s oldest government medical institution, described the allegations as “baseless,” stating the child was brought in on an Advanced Life Support ambulance and appropriately referred between departments due to the nature of her injuries.

The girl had initially been taken to a local hospital after being found with knife wounds near her aunt’s home in Muzaffarpur, where she was allegedly raped on 26 May by a local man, now under arrest.

She was later referred to Patna for reconstructive surgery on her windpipe.

A viral video showing Congress leaders confronting hospital staff over the girl’s admission fuelled public anger. Rahul Gandhi labelled the incident “extremely shameful” and called for accountability.

The National Human Rights Commission and the National Commission for Women have both sought reports on the hospital’s role.

Hospital officials said the girl was initially placed in the paediatrics department but transferred to gynaecology due to a lack of intensive care facilities in ENT, where her injuries would have been treated.

Opposition parties, including Congress and the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), have condemned the incident and staged multiple protests.

The episode has once again brought Bihar’s fragile healthcare infrastructure under scrutiny. In May, an incident involving a rat biting a patient in another Patna hospital also drew widespread criticism and led to an investigation.

Under Indian law, rape victims cannot be named.