Barao Abdul: Stone in gall bladder. A Telegraph picture

Barao Abdul’s woes seem to be mounting by the day.

The 30-year-old, who claims to be a resident of Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, requires surgical removal of a stone in the gall bladder.

But doctors at NRS Medical College and Hospital, where she has been languishing for the past nine months, are unable to operate on her as there is no one around to sign the risk bond.

The Pakistani high commission in New Delhi, though aware of the situation, cannot do anything unless the external affairs ministry allows its officials to visit Calcutta and identify the patient.

The stalemate surrounding Abdul’s treatment was discussed on Wednesday at a meeting attended by her doctor Srijit Ghosh, NRS superintendent Basanta Khan and the surgeon who has recommended the surgery for the removal of the stone.

“I will consult legal and medical experts on how to deal with the situation. The director of medical education, who had referred the case to us, will also be approached,” said Khan.

“Abdul’s relatives are not around and she herself is not mentally sound enough (she had suffered a psychotic episode) to give consent for the surgery,” he pointed out.

The doctors attending to Abdul have decided to go ahead with pre-surgical tests, so the operation is not delayed once the clearance comes.

The stone in the gall bladder was confirmed by two ultrasonography tests that Abdul underwent in the past few months. It was initially asymptomatic, not requiring an operation. But a few days ago, she started complaining of pain in the upper abdomen, prompting Ghosh to seek the opinion of a surgeon.

Abdul, who says she hails from Balgaon, in Harchoyal district of PoK, was found unconscious near Contai, on the Calcutta-Digha road, early on April 27, 2006.

She was admitted to Contai sub-divisional hospital the same afternoon by local residents and social workers. The attending doctor in Contai referred her to NRS on May 16, 2006, but the referral card was not sent to the Calcutta hospital for three months.

Abdul was finally brought to NRS Hospital and admitted to the psychiatric department on August 28.