A medical scam was unearthed in South Delhi’s Greater Kailash area, where two patients died after surgeries performed on them by a fraudulent surgeon. In connection with the case, Delhi Police have arrested four individuals, including Dr. Neeraj Agarwal, his wife Pooja Agarwal, Dr. Jaspreet Singh, and former laboratory technician Mahendra Singh.
According to Chandan Chaudhary, DCP of South Delhi, Dr. Neeraj Agarwal, the owner of Agarwal Medical Centre, and Pooja Agarwal, his wife, used to prepare fake documents pertaining to the treatment and surgery of the patients in a very frequent manner. Dr. Jaspreet (MBBS, MS) was also arrested for preparing fake surgery notes. Police arrested four people under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code and other laws.
The unfolding event reveals that Mr. Asgar Ali was hospitalized at Agarwal Medical Centre for the removal of a stone from his gallbladder on October 10, 2022. After the surgical procedure, Ali complained of severe pain, following which he was rushed to the city's Safdarjung Hospital. However, doctors declared him dead on arrival after a medical examination.
After the incident, the deceased wife learned that two people involved in the operation did not possess a medical degree. She then rushed to file the complaint with the police.
An investigation uncovered a similar incident in which deceased Jai Narayan (44) died after surgery for the removal of a gallbladder stone in October this year.
During the probe, it was discovered that seven complaints had been filed with the Delhi Medical Council against Agarwal Medical Centre, Dr. Neeraj, Pooja, since 2016 by the relatives of those who had apparently died due to medical negligence.
During the search of Neeraj Agarwal's residence, police seized 414 prescription slips with only doctors' signatures, two registers containing patient details for medical termination of pregnancy procedures, and unauthorized medications and injections not permitted for storage outside hospital settings. Moreover, expired surgical blades, original prescription slips, checkbooks from 47 banks, 54 ATM cards, passbooks from multiple post offices, and six POS terminal credit card machines were retrieved from Agarwal's residence and clinic. These findings point to a certainly widespread and alarming pattern of malpractice in the medical center.
Further investigation into the matter is underway.
(Input from various media sources)
(Rehash/Komal Bhoi)
