Gujarat / COVID-19 patient dies hrs after his sperm was collected on Gujarat HC's order

Vadodara: A 32-year-old Covid-19 patient in Gujarat's Vadodara has died days after the high court allowed a city hospital to collect his sperms following his wife's petition saying she wanted to bear his child artificially. "The hospital had informed us that they had extracted the sperm of my client's husband shortly after the high court gave a go-ahead for it on Tuesday evening. But he passed away on Thursday," Nilay Patel, the woman's lawyer, was quoted as saying by news agency PTI. "Further hearing in the case is scheduled today," Patel also said.

The wife of the man, who was on life support at Sterling Hospital after suffering from multi-organ failure following coronavirus infection, moved the high court on Tuesday. The woman said she wanted to have the man's child through in vitro fertilisation method or Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) procedure but he was not in a condition to give consent for the collection of his sperm.

She said in her plea citing doctors that his chances of survival were slim and approached the court after the hospital demanded a court order to collect his sperm.

Justice Ashutosh J Shastri granted an urgent hearing to the woman and directed the hospital to collect the man's sperm as soon as possible and store it appropriately. In its order on Tuesday, the high court said that "interim relief is granted in an extraordinary urgent situation" and it "shall be subject to the outcome of the petition".

Further hearing about the granting permission for IVF/ART procedure has been scheduled on Friday.

Anil Nambiar, zonal director at Sterling Hospital, told reporters on Wednesday that doctors successfully extracted the man's sperm on Tuesday night, within hours of receiving the court's order.

"The patient's family decided to carry out the procedure. But we needed the consent of the individual on whom the process is to be carried out. Since he is critical and cannot give his consent, we could do so only if the court allowed," Nambiar told the media on Wednesday, reported PTI.

Nambiar also said that the IVF procedure will be carried out after the court allows it.