The father of Savita Halappanavar has vowed he 'will definitely take legal action' against the Galway hospital where his daughter died.
Speaking to The Star in the wake of the inquest that found Savita’s death at University Hospital Galway was due to medical misadventure, Andanappa Yalagi said he will 'definitely, definitely' take legal action.
The 31-year-old Indian born dentist was reportedly 17 weeks pregnant when she was admitted to University Hospital Galway in October 2012 suffering a miscarriage. But Halappanavar later died when her condition worsened after she was refused an abortion.
Speaking from Belgaum in India, her retired engineer father told The Star he was extremely unhappy that 'no-one has yet told us the real reason for my daughter’s death. I am not satisfied by the inquest because the truth about what led to my daughter’s death still has not come out,' he said.
'What I think is that the Government and the doctors need to take responsibility for what happened to Savita but so far no-one is doing that. No-one from the hospital or the Government — not the doctors, not the politicians — have spoken of the negligence that killed my daughter.'
'I believe we will never get justice from the Irish Government so we are definitely going to take a legal action against the hospital.'
Yalagi was disgusted by what he called the lack of individual accountability following the inquiry into Halappanavar's death, although he expressed his gratitude to midwife Ann-Marie Burke who admitted during the inquest that she told Savita she could not have a termination in Ireland because it was a 'Catholic thing.'
Yalagi said: 'I salute her because she spoke the truth and if she came to India she would be welcome in my home. I invite her to come here because she told the truth.'
Andanappa has also confirmed that Savita’s husband Praveen is considering taking the case to the European Court of Justice. 'We want the truth and we want someone held responsible,' he added.
During the state inquest, obstetrician Peter Boylan said he believed Savita would still be alive if she had been allowed an abortion when she was miscarrying before there was a risk to her life, by which time it was already too late to save her.
Meanwhile the Irish prime minister Enda Kenny has said he is 'hopeful' that planned abortion legislation will be ready by July. Speaking to Midwest Radio, Kenny said clarity must be brought to the law: 'It's a sensitive issue. It's one that requires very careful consideration because you are talking about two lives, the life of the mother and the life of the unborn.
'In the case of what has to be done here, it has to be in accordance with the constitution. There is clearly a requirement to give legal clarity for medical personnel,' he added.
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