Anti-Corruption Court Sentenced A Doctor Couple To 7 Years Of Rigorous Imprisonment*
An anti-corruption court sentenced a doctor couple to seven years of rigorous imprisonment on Thursday and slapped a fine of Rs 1 crore on them in a case of disproportionate assets. The court also ordered that a private hospital run by the doctor couple be sealed and ordered Kota DM to take over this private hospital. Five co-accused in the case were handed 3 to 5 years of imprisonment.
Additional director of prosecution (ACB court) Ehsaan Ali Ahmad said, “The couple were found guilty of conspiracy to accumulate wealth even as they served in the government.” The doctor was a medical officer at the Government Maharao Bhim Singh Hospital of Kota from 1982 to 1998. During this period he set up TT Hospital and Research Centre in which his wife, her parents, and four others made investments as board members.
The Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) lodged the disproportionate assets case against the couple in 2003, charging them with accumulating wealth of Rs 33 lakh through illegal means.The court has also directed the Kota district collector to seize TT Hospital and recover fine of Rs 1 crore from the couple.
The ACB court sentenced the co-accused, old parents of his wife to 3 years’ rigorous imprisonment and fined each Rs 5 lakh. All the accused have been found guilty under section 120B of IPC for criminal conspiracy and under section 13 (1) (E) and 13 (2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act.
Such rigorous punishment to a Doctor couple doing pvt practice along with government job is a unique type and punishment to old parents and seizing of a pvt hospital is almost unknown. It appears Doctors are a soft target and sitting duck that is why so much rare punishment lodged against these Doctors.
On one hand,it appears a great decision to curb corruption but such doing private practice is rampant all over India,not only in cities,metro and towns but in remove villages ,many doctors in PHC and sub centre do open private practice,illegally by clout and commission many doctors in sub-divisional, district, block or medical colleges bring patients from there to private clinic or run their hidden pvt practice too but hardly such strict punishment awarded. Even sometimes hard decision by the department is taken doctors usually leave the job but their later judiciary punishment is almost unknown beside departmental action.
Beside this Bureaucrats, officials, contractors, police judges are openly reported for black earning.Politicians are doing all kind of civil and criminal crime but they are hardly punished, banks are looted by rich indrustalists openly but rich and almighty never punished. Some pleople just leave countries but cant brought back here for recovery of loan what to talk of punishment