Pune: An 86-year-old woman admitted to Ruby Ailcare Services at Yashwantrao Chavan Memorial Hospital in Pimpri died during treatment. Her relatives have accused the hospital management of refusing to release her body until the hospital bill was paid, a claim the hospital denies.

The elderly woman, admitted on June 29 following a heart attack, was initially promised free treatment under a charity scheme. She was later transferred to the Ruby Ailcare department, where her family was informed the next day that she did not qualify for free treatment and needed to pay ₹1 lakh.

The family, unable to afford the payment, struggled with the demand. The woman passed away a few hours later, and social workers stated that the hospital demanded ₹57,000 for one day's treatment and refused to release the body until the bill was settled.

After social workers filed a complaint with the municipal authorities, the hospital management handed over the body to the relatives. The National Commission for Scheduled Castes has taken notice and requested necessary documents to proceed with further action.

"After the woman's death, her family contacted me. We then filed a complaint against Ruby Ailcare with the municipal administration. It took 22 hours for the body to be handed over to the relatives after the complaint," said Yunus Pathan, a social worker.

"The body of the deceased was illegally held after her death. Harassment incidents are common here. Since the deceased was a Scheduled Caste woman, we demand action against those responsible," said Deepak Kamble, Deputy District President, MIM.

"We kept the woman's body in the morgue and did not harass the relatives. She was not eligible for benefits under the Mahatma Jotirao Phule scheme, which we had informed the relatives about. We have all the necessary documents, which we have submitted to the municipal administration," said Apoorva Shah, Executive Head, Ruby Ailcare.