NCDRC Holds Surgeon Guilty of Gross Negligence for Removing Healthy Kidney, Awards ₹2 Crore Compensation

May 22, 2026 : The National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (NCDRC) has held a surgeon guilty of gross medical negligence for mistakenly removing a woman’s healthy left kidney instead of her diseased right kidney, an error that ultimately led to her death after prolonged suffering.

A Bench comprising President Justice AP Sahi and Member Bharatkumar Pandey directed the doctor to pay a total compensation of ₹2 crore to the deceased patient’s family. The Commission awarded ₹1.5 crore as lump sum compensation for medical negligence, ₹10 lakh each to the complainants for loss of love and affection, and ₹1 lakh towards litigation expenses.

The Commission further ordered that the compensation amount would carry interest at the rate of 6 per cent per annum from February 20, 2014, the date of the patient’s death, until actual payment. It added that if the amount was not paid within three months, the interest rate would increase to 9 per cent per annum.

In its order dated May 18, the Commission described the consequences of the surgical mistake as “catastrophic”. It observed that the patient’s healthy left kidney was critical for her survival and that its removal, while leaving the diseased right kidney inside the body, completely destroyed any realistic possibility of recovery.

The case concerned Shanti Devi, who had been diagnosed in April 2012 with severe hydronephrosis in her right kidney. Medical imaging and ultrasound reports conducted before surgery clearly showed that the right kidney was severely damaged and functioning poorly, whereas the left kidney was completely normal. Based on these findings, doctors planned surgery for removal of the right kidney.

However, radiological and CT scan reports carried out after the operation in June 2012 revealed that the diseased right kidney still remained in her body, while the healthy left kidney had been removed instead.

The Commission noted that following the surgery, the patient was left dependent on the dysfunctional right kidney and had to undergo repeated dialysis for nearly two years before dying in 2014.

Linking her prolonged suffering and eventual death directly to the negligent surgery, the Bench observed that the failure to remove the diseased kidney deprived her of any meaningful chance of recovery or improvement in her health condition.

Rejecting the surgeon’s defence, the Commission noted that the doctor had argued it was anatomically impossible to remove the left kidney through a right-side surgical incision and claimed that such an error could not have occurred during the procedure.

The Bench, however, found the explanation unacceptable. It pointed out that the surgery had been specifically planned as a “right side nephrectomy” and that the doctor himself had recorded the same in the post-operative notes. The Commission also observed that there was no evidence of any separate medical procedure that could explain the absence of the healthy left kidney.

The NCDRC further relied on findings of the Uttar Pradesh Medical Council, which had earlier held the doctor negligent, suspended his medical registration for two years and recorded that a forged case sheet had been produced during the disciplinary proceedings. The Medical Council of India had subsequently upheld that decision.

While assessing compensation, the Commission acknowledged that the exact financial calculations submitted by the complainants were not fully supported by documentary proof. Nevertheless, it held that substantial compensation was warranted considering the patient’s prolonged suffering, her premature death at the age of 56, and the emotional and personal loss suffered by her family.