In a significant move, the Maharashtra government suspended two senior physicians from Sassoon General Hospital in Pune on Wednesday. They were accused of tampering with the minor’s blood samples in the May 19 Porsche car crash that claimed two lives.
Hospital Dean Dr. Vinayak Kale has been placed on “compulsory leave” concurrently, and another senior physician has taken over as his charge, according to an official.
The Directorate of Medical Education & Research (DMER), Mumbai, imposed immediate suspension orders on Drs. Ajay Taware and Shrihari Halnor, with a detailed notification released on Wednesday. The orders were signed by M.R. Bandpatte.
The two were taken into custody following a two-day investigation by a special three-member medical panel led by Dr. Pallavi Saple into the events that led to the substitution of blood samples, tampering with the minor’s blood report (who is presently being held in a juvenile correctional facility until June 5) and other relevant case details.
The two doctors have been prohibited from taking any private jobs while they are on suspension; they are presently being held by the police until May 31.
So far, police investigations have shown that Drs. Taware and Halnor disposed of the minor’s blood sample in the trash can, arranged for the blood sample of another individual, and filed their report, presumably in an attempt to clear the 17-year-old accused boy.
Dr. Halnor and another hospital peon, Atul Ghatkamble, who served as the middleman for the transaction, were raided by the police, who found that Rs. 3 lakh had allegedly changed hands for favours in the case that caused a national uproar.
The Pune Police did, however, collect a second sample of the accused boy, which they sent to a different hospital for examination. The results of that analysis matched the father of the minor’s blood samples, and this should help the police create a strong case.
