MUKESH JOSHI Vs. MANU SHARMA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) These two Appeals have been filed by four Doctors Dr. Mukesh Joshi and Ors. (hereinafter referred to as, the 'Opposite Parties Nos. 2 to 5') and the Oriental Insurance Co. Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as, the 'Opposite Parties Nos. 6 to 10') respectively against the same impugned Order dtd. 16/4/2021 passed by the State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission, Punjab, Chandigarh (hereinafter referred to as the "State Commission") in MA No. 2072 & 2073 of 2020 in CC No. 886 of 2018, whereby the Complaint filed by the Complainants was partly allowed with a total compensation of Rs.33.00 lakh and Rs.5,000.00 towards litigation costs to be paid by the Appellants to the Complainants.

(2.) Brief facts of the case are that, on the complaint of pain in left knee of their daughter - Ms. Jiya Sharma (hereinafter referred to as, 'the patient'), her parents / Respondents Nos. 1 & 2 (hereinafter referred to as, the 'Complainants'), on 10/5/2017, took her to Dr. Kulwant Singh (hereinafter referred to as, the 'Opposite Party No. 1') on 12/5/2017, who, after getting some tests conducted, advised the Complainants to visit 'Joshi Super Specialty and Multispecialty Hospital' at Jalandhar. On 16/5/2017, at Joshi Hospital, the patient was being treated under Dr. Mukesh Joshi Opposite Party No. 2, who, after diagnosing the disease as Arthritis, treated the patient from 16/5/2017 to 8/7/2017. It was alleged that during the visits to the Opposite Party No. 2, the patient had unbearable pain and swelling increasing day by day in her knee with difficulty while walking, which condition, the Doctor referred to it as normal for that age with the assurance of cure with time.

(3.) When the pain persisted, on 10/7/2017, the Complainants took the patient for second opinion to Dr. Rajesh Saggar Opposite Party No. 4 at Vedanta Multispecialty Hospital, Jalandhar, who, after diagnosing the disease as Arthritis and getting some tests conducted, treated the patient for the same, but the condition of the patient deteriorated to the extent that she had to use a wheelchair. On 12/8/2017, on the advice of the Opposite Party No. 4, the patient was taken to Dr. Parshant Aggarwal Opposite Party No. 5 at his clinic at Ludhiana, who, after examining the patient, detected the disease as 'steroid dependent inflammatory oligoarthritis' and prescribed certain tests. It was alleged that the Complainants followed all the directions of the Opposite Party No. 5, but the condition of the patient kept deteriorating which resulted in reduced blood count, eyes bulging out and even lymphnodes appearing on her neck and head. On 2/9/2017, the Complainants revisited the clinic of Opposite Party No. 5, who again advised various blood tests of complete haemogram, etc. It was alleged that upon query about the serious condition of the patient, the Opposite Party No. 5 behaved rudely with the Complainants and asked them to shift the patient to another doctor.