Ranchi. After the strict stance of the Jharkhand High Court, an FIR has finally been registered in the serious case of transfusion of HIV infected blood to five innocent children suffering from thalassemia in West Singhbhum district of Jharkhand. On the instructions of the High Court, an FIR has been registered against Manoj Kumar, the then lab technician of the blood bank of Sadar Hospital and other concerned personnel at Chaibasa Sadar police station.
This incident is being told of October 2025. Five children aged 5 to 7 years were given HIV infected blood during routine blood transfusion at Chaibasa Sadar Hospital. Later, when testing was done, all the children were confirmed to be HIV positive, which created a stir in the entire district. The family members of the children alleged that there was serious negligence in the blood testing and screening process at the blood bank.
During the hearing of the case, the court of Justice Gautam Kumar of Jharkhand High Court described it as a very serious matter and related to human life. The court gave clear instructions that the victim’s family should file a complaint in the concerned police station and the police station in-charge should immediately file an FIR. The court also said that delay in such cases is unacceptable and hinders the victims from getting justice. Following the court order, a case was registered at Chaibasa Sadar police station on the application given by the mother of one of the victim children.
Sadar police station in-charge Tarun Kumar said that it has been alleged in the application that the blood was not tested as per the prescribed standards in the blood bank, due to which the infected blood was transfused to the children and they got infected with HIV. The police have registered an FIR and started investigation and the relevant documents and role of the employees are being examined.
The High Court had also expressed displeasure that despite the incident coming to light, there was a delay of about four months in registering the FIR. The court had termed it as a serious failure of the system.
After the case came to light, the state government had announced a compensation of Rs 2 lakh each to each victim’s family. Also, the then civil surgeon Dr. Sushanto Kumar Manjhi was suspended and lab technician Manoj Kumar was relieved. Health Minister Irfan Ansari had also gone to Chaibasa and met the families of the victims and assured strict action.
Regarding this matter, the family members, under the leadership of Jharkhand Bachao Jan Sangharsh Morcha, had staged a protest in front of the Legislative Assembly in Ranchi. Later, a petition was filed in the High Court on behalf of the organization, after which the FIR could be registered with the intervention of the court. The organization has demanded strict action against the culprits and comprehensive reforms in the blood bank system of the state, so that such a horrific incident does not happen again in future.