CBI arrests former RG Kar director Sandip Ghosh on corruption charges amid ongoing protests by junior doctors

Calcutta: CBI on Monday arrested former RG Kar Principal Sandip Ghosh on charges of corruption in the hospital. Ghosh has been interrogated by the central sleuths for over two weeks since the Calcutta High Court ordered CBI to take over the case from Kolkata police.

Besides Ghoshna (53), the CBI had also arrested Biplav Singha (52), a vendor, Suman Hazara Vendor (46) and Afsar Ali 44, Addl Security to Dr Sandip Ghosh. The protesting students, who were demonstrating outside Kolkata’s Lalbazar police station after their gathering was stopped at the time of the report, are ‘happy’ but said their protests will continue.

Aniket Mahata, a protesting junior doctor, said: “We are partly happy that he has been arrested, but this arrest is for financial irregularities. What about the rape and murder incident? We are waiting for the Supreme Court verdict on September 5. After that, we will decide on our future plans.”

Asked if they would resume their work, Mahata said their protest would continue till ‘justice’ was achieved. Significantly, the central agency’s sleuths had nabbed Ghosh from the CGO complex late on Monday night and taken him to the Nizam’s palace, after which he was arrested.

Incidentally, this is the second arrest in the RG Kar hospital incident. Earlier, Kolkata police arrested a civilian volunteer Sanjoy Roy for the rape and murder incident.

It may be recalled that former deputy director of RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, Akhtar Ali, had earlier said that Ghosh was running a ‘mafia regiment’ in the hospital.

Ali had even filed a petition in the Calcutta High Court seeking an inquiry by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) into the financial irregularities committed by Ghosh at the hospital. Following this, the court had directed the CBI to conduct an inquiry.

“In March last year, I complained to the Anti-Corruption Department and the Vigilance Commission. Thereafter, I complained to the Health Ministry and also to the Chief Minister’s office about the malpractices of Sandip Ghosh at the RG Kar Hospital. An inquiry committee was set up to investigate the charges against Ghosh, but later the committee was closed and we, the members of the committee, were transferred,” Ali had earlier told the Free Press Journal.

The former deputy director also alleged that Ghosh supplied alcohol to students and carried out biomedical and body fraud in the hospital and also took commission from students to make them pass the exams. Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) state president and MoS Sukanta Majumdar said that at least Ghosh has been ‘finally arrested’.