Chennai: The bodies of two teenage girls were mistakenly exchanged and handed over to the wrong families after post-mortem examinations at Government Stanley Medical College Hospital, causing distress and confusion, the police said.The error came to light when one family discovered the mix-up after taking the body home for funeral preparations.Police said, Anushka, 19, from Arpakkam in Tiruvallur district, died while undergoing treatment at the hospital following a suicide attempt. In a separate case, body of Priyadharshini, 17, of Manali, who also died by suicide, was brought to the hospital for a post-mortem.Hospital authorities conducted the examinations and released the bodies based on identification tokens. However, after reaching home, Priyadharshini’s family realized the body was not hers.The family alerted hospital officials, who confirmed that the bodies had been interchanged. Staff members later retrieved and returned the bodies to the correct families after completing identification procedures.The incident led to tension at the hospital, with relatives demanding an explanation. The hospital administration said an inquiry had been initiated to determine how the error occurred during the post-mortem and handover process. Hospital dean has issued a memo seeking an explanation from the assistant professor of forensic medicine.
