“They Killed My Son”: Father Takes On Nulife Hospital

Inside the Nulife Hospital Tragedy: How a Father Fought India’s Broken Medical System

Seven Years, Endless Pleas

For nearly seven years, Dr. Alok Kumar has been fighting an exhausting legal battle to seek justice for his son, Baby Aayansh — a fight that began in the delivery room of Nulife Hospital in 2018 and continues to this day in courtrooms, commissions, and regulatory bodies.

His son was born at Nulife Hospital, a private facility in northwest Delhi, after what was supposed to be a normal delivery. Within minutes of birth, the newborn was found struggling for life — deprived of oxygen, unable to cry, and later diagnosed with hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy, a severe brain injury caused by oxygen deprivation during delivery.

“The pregnancy was absolutely normal. The ultrasound reports showed everything was fine. Yet, my child was born critically ill,” says Dr. Kumar, his voice steady but resolute.

Over time, when the family examined hospital records, they found glaring inconsistencies — the expected date of delivery (EDD) marked by the Nulife Hospital obstetrician was nearly a month earlier than the EDD shown in multiple ultrasound reports. Dr. Kumar alleges that this “miscalculation” led to premature induction of labour, triggering a chain of events that ultimately cost his child his life.

“This was not fate,” he told The Probe. “This was preventable. The signs were ignored, and my child is a victim of medical negligence — and he paid the price with his life.”

The Long Road to Accountability

Dr. Kumar says his struggle has not been against one doctor alone, but against a system that shields negligence. “The Delhi Medical Council had also stated that there was indeed negligence and had ordered for the cancellation of licence of the concerned doctor, Dr. Shakuntala Kumar, for 90 days. Despite all this, the police didn’t register an FIR. Then I moved the Rohini court,” he recalls.

It took nearly four years for the first meaningful action. “In 2022, the court ordered for the registration of an FIR and then finally the police registered an FIR. Even there, the police diluted the FIR and registered the case under very light sections,” he said.

Dr. Kumar alleges that the investigation itself was flawed from the start. “When the police started their investigation, the investigating officer seemed like he was not interested in finding out the truth. In the closure report, he even wrote that he had interrogated me and my wife when, in reality, he had never met my wife,” he said.

In September 2023, the police filed a closure report stating there was no negligence — a claim Dr. Kumar calls “shocking” given the evidence. “There were manipulations, contradictions, everything on record. They ignored the DMC order and the AIIMS observations. In October 2023, I filed a protest petition. Now, finally, after two years, the Rohini court has pronounced its verdict.”

The court’s order on 6 October 2025 summoned one of the doctors, while noting that no prima facie case was found against three others. For Dr. Kumar, it is a small but significant victory.

Allegations Against Nulife Hospital

At the centre of Dr. Kumar’s case are serious allegations against Nulife Hospital and its medical staff:

• Miscalculation of delivery date: Despite multiple ultrasounds indicating a later due date, the hospital allegedly advanced it by nearly four weeks.

• Unnecessary induction of labour: Labour was reportedly induced using oxytocin even though there was no clinical indication or fetal distress.

• Failure to respond to fetal distress: The baby’s heart rate reportedly dropped during delivery, but the family alleges that the response was delayed.

• Manipulated medical records: The family claims that labour room notes and hospital entries were altered after the incident.

Dr. Kumar says these actions collectively caused irreversible harm to his child. “Ultrasound reports showed that both the baby and mother were perfectly fine. A medicine called Oxytocin was given to my wife — a drug that must be administered only under strict supervision. The hospital’s discharge report states that my wife arrived in labour pain, but the doctor herself submitted that she gave Oxytocin at 10 pm and then labour pain began. This is just one of the many contradictions,” he said.

Systemic Failures and Conflicts of Interest

Beyond the courtroom, Dr. Kumar’s fight has exposed troubling conflicts within India’s medical regulatory system. “When the DMC stated there was negligence, Nulife Hospital and the doctors appealed before the National Medical Commission (NMC). The NMC then appointed an expert — Dr. Sharada Jain — who was a senior member of the same Delhi Gynaecologist Forum where both she and the treating doctor, Dr. Shakuntala Kumar, held important positions. How can this be impartial?” he asks.

According to Dr. Kumar, this overlap reflects “the level of corruption in NMC.” The NMC eventually gave a clean chit to Nulife Hospital, a decision Dr. Kumar challenged in the Delhi High Court. “The High Court found that there was indeed a conflict of interest in the NMC’s investigation and stayed its order. That stay is still active,” he said.

He is simultaneously pursuing cases before the National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (NCDRC) and the Delhi High Court, while continuing to represent his deceased son in each forum.

A Relentless Pursuit

Even after Baby Aayansh’s death in December 2023, Dr. Kumar’s resolve has not weakened. “Justice for Aayansh is justice for many parents who never get heard,” he says quietly. “If doctors can alter basic clinical data and get away with it, no patient is safe.”

Today, the Nulife Hospital case stands as a stark reminder of how fragmented and opaque India’s medical accountability system remains — where families must fight for years to have even one doctor summoned to court.

For Dr. Kumar, this fight is no longer just about one hospital or one doctor. “It’s about ensuring that what happened at Nulife Hospital never happens to another child,” he says.