Registered society fighting for a better healthcare system
(Regd. No. S/IL/6017 of 2001-2002)
President: Dr. Kunal Saha Secretary: Ms. Ratna Ghosh
2704 Bridgewatch Lane Commercial Point (Ground floor)
Hilliard, OH 43026, USA 79 Lenin Sarani, Kolkata 700013
Tel: 001-614-893-6772 Tel: 9143650171/9831983670
Email: Web: WWW.PBTINDIA.COM
September 5, 2016
Hon’ble Justice Mr. R.M. Lodha and Members of
MCI Oversight Committee (MCI-OC)
Academic Block (Second Floor)
National Institute of Health & Family Welfare
Munirka, New Delhi 110067
Hon’ble Justice Mr. Lodha and Other Members of MCI-OC:
I’m sending this earnest appeal on behalf of myself and our charitable organization (PBT) which is devoted to promote a better healthcare system in India to seek your kind and urgent intervention in regard to the atrocious attempts by the MCI in order to shield unscrupulous doctors including several high-rank sitting MCI members as well as disgraced ex-MCI president, Dr. Ketan Desai. As enumerated hereinbelow (along with the attached supporting documents), the sheer atrocities by the top MCI leaders started ever since the present MCI was reconstituted in December, 2013. It may be pertinent to mention in this regard that the so-called election of the present MCI members including its president and vice-president was marred with widespread allegations of fraud and corruption by Dr. Desai and his medical cronies. In fact, our organization has already challenged the last MCI election in the Hon’ble Supreme Court of India vide a public interest litigation (PIL) through Writ Petition (Civil) No. 890/2014 (People for Better Treatment vs. Union of India & Ors.) in which notices have already been issued against the MCI and other respondents including Dr. Desai. However, the two separate but related issues about ongoing MCI atrocities that we respectfully bring before this Hon’ble MCI-OC through this representation for your urgent intervention are not part of our PIL which is pending before the Hon’ble Apex Court. The two issues also have a great public interest as they pertain to deep-rooted corruption in the medical education and healthcare delivery system. Ironically, both issues, as described below, relate as to how top MCI leaders have been working together to shield and revive the most scandalous Indian physician and ex-MCI chief, Dr. Ketan Desai, using their high-profile official positions.
1) MCI’s deliberate inaction against Dr. Ketan Desai: As widely reported across India, then MCI president, Dr. Ketan Desai, was caught red-handed and arrested by the CBI allegedly for taking huge bribe from a private medical college in April, 2010. Following Dr. Desai’s arrest, MCI was dissolved by the government and replaced by a “Board of Governors” (BOG) headed by Prof. (Dr.) Shiv Sarin, who is also an esteemed member of this Hon’ble MCI-OC. While Dr. Desai is free on bail today waiting for the criminal trial to begin for serious charges of bribery and corruption before a CBI Court in New Delhi, several high-ranked MCI members are involved with a baleful plan to promote Dr. Desai and restore him to the top pedestal of Indian medical system.
Following Dr. Desai’s arrest in 2010, I lodged an official complaint against Dr. Desai for “professional misconduct” under MCI “Codes of Ethics Regulations, 2002” (as framed under section 20A read with section 33m of Indian Medical Council Act, 1956). The MCI-BOG passed an Order dated 9th October, 2010 holding Dr. Desai prima facie guilty and directing that during pendency of my complaint, he is “debarred from practicing medicine and participating as a doctor in medical conference anywhere and representing doctors in any medical council, conference, and association etc.” (MCI Order attached, Annexure- 1). Following the MCI-BOG’s direction for indefinite suspension of Dr. Desai’s medical registration, his name was also removed from the Indian Medical Register (IMR) available on MCI website.
After a new MCI was established in December, 2013 with Dr. Jayshreeben Mehta as the new president (through a rigged election under direct influence of Dr. Desai which is the principal allegation in our pending PIL in the Apex Court), they started an all out effort to restore the dented public image of Dr. Desai. The name of Dr. Desai was reinstated in the IMR (as can be seen now) despite having a suspended medical registration as per the previous order by the MCI-BOG (Annexure-1). My repeated requests to know the exact status of my complaint against Dr. Desai have been ignored by the MCI. However, information obtained (under the RTI Act, 2005) from the MCI in November, 2015 clearly shows that my complaint against Dr. Desai is still “being examined by the Ethics Section” (see attached RTI response from MCI, Annexure- 2).
After coming to power, several high-rank MCI and IMA members including Dr. Ajay Kumar (chairman of MCI Grievance Committee), Dr. Vinay Aggarwal, Dr. Sudipto Roy (members of MCI Ethics Committee) and Dr. K.K. Aggarwal (IMA Secretary-General and ad hoc MCI Ethics Committee member) orchestrated a sinister plan, using their high official positions inside MCI/IMA, to reinstate Dr. Desai to the prestigious post of World Medical Association (WMA) president despite being criminally indicted and having his medical registration still suspended. These unscrupulous MCI members, headed by Dr. Ajay Kumar, appeared before the WMA on behalf of Dr. Desai to present blatantly false information that all charges against Dr. Desai have been dropped by the Indian authority. Based on these fraudulent claims by top MCI/IMA leaders, WMA was misled to reinstate Dr. Desai as WMA president-elect in October, 2013 (WMA press release attached, Annexure- 3). The news of tainted Dr. Desai regaining the post of WMA president was highly publicized that sent a strong negative and demoralizing signal to the ordinary people and honest doctors across India (Annexure- 4). Although I brought these untoward developments and blatant violations of the MCI’s previous order against Dr. Desai (Annexure-1) to the attention of the MCI, they remained non-responsive and showed absolutely no interest to stop the top MCI members from aiding Dr. Desai through lies and deceptions.
2) MCI’s refusal to take action against corrupt members as recommended by the Chief Vigilance Officer (CVO): Dr. Desai was supposed to become WMA president when CBI arrested him on charges of bribery and his medical registration was indefinitely suspended by the MCI in 2010. But following his criminal indictment and suspension of his medical registration by the MCI-BOG in 2010, the world medical organization decided to rescind their decision to make Dr. Desai as the WMA president. However, as discussed above, after top MCI/IMA members approached WMA and made the fraudulent claim that Dr. Desai has been completely exonerated from all criminal charges by the Indian authority, they decided to reinstate Dr. Desai as WMA president-elect (Annexures- 3, 4).
As the MCI leaders showed absolutely no interest to take any action to prevent Dr. Desai regaining the post of WMA president-elect through candid support from top MCI members, I lodged a formal complaint with the CBI against the conniving MCI members who made the fraudulent claim that all charges against Dr. Desai have been dropped by the CBI. My complaint was transferred to the MCI Chief Vigilance Officer (CVO), Mr. H.K. Jethi, who issued a 10-page investigative report on 31st October, 2014 vide Memo No. MCI/CVO/005(1)/2014/101386 (see attached MCI-CVO report, Annexure- 5). The MCI-CVO not only affirmed my allegation of conspiracy by high-rank MCI members to help Dr. Ketan Desai regain the post of WMA president through fraudulent claims, the MCI-CVO also recommended to the MCI president for appropriate disciplinary action against “Dr. Ajay Kumar as well as Dr. Sudipto Roy and Dr. Vinay Aggarwal, Ethics Committee members, MCI/IMA Officials” (Annexure- 5). In order to prevent Dr. Desai from assuming the post of WMA president through deception and lies, the MCI-CVO report further recommended “to inform the WMA that two CBI cases are still pending against Dr. Ketan Desai and presently he is on bail in CBI main trap case No. RCO2 (A)/2010/CBI/ACU/IX-New Delhi dated 22.04.2010 (Annexure- 5).
The MCI has also admitted (under RTI Act, 2005) that they received the report from the MCI-CVO in regard to my complaint against Dr. Ajay Kumar and others for helping Dr. Desai regaining the post of WMA president (see attach RTI response from MCI dated 27th November, 2014, Annexure- 6). However, MCI has refused to take any action in this serious matter and my repeated requests to the MCI president to take urgent disciplinary action against the scheming MCI members as recommended by the MCI-CVO were brushed under the rug. It may also be pertinent to mention in this regard that even the MCI-CVO was physically threatened and harassed by the MCI president for conducting investigation of my complaint against Dr. Ajay Kumar and other MCI members. This fact has been categorically stated in a scathing letter by the Joint Secretary of Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (see attached letter from Joint Secretary dated 9th July, 2014, Annexure- 7). In this letter to the CBI, the Joint Secretary of Health has raised many other serious issues in regard to the ongoing corruption inside the MCI and also made a shocking and unequivocal observation that in order to cover up irregularities inside the medical council, the MCI president is “functioning in an autocratic manner” (Annexure- 7),
Apart from the blatant attempts by the MCI president and other senior MCI members to promote Dr. Desai as discussed above, Dr. K.K. Aggarwal, IMA Secretary-General and an ad hoc MCI Ethics Committee member, has also taken an active and fraudulent role to elevate Dr. Desai as the next WMA president. In an email dated 22nd July, 2015 to the WMA Secretary-General, Dr. Aggarwal has made blatantly false submission that all allegations of bribery raised by the CBI is nothing but a “blatant false allegation” (email from Dr. Aggarwal attached, Annexure- 8). In a desperate attempt to impress WMA for lifting the suspension against Dr. Desai being appointed as the WMA president, Dr. Aggarwal has even fabricated an absurd story that I have a “specific vested interest of preventing Dr. Desai to take over as the president of WMA” and that my “main interest was to get into the MCI….” (Annexure- 8 ). I’ve been permanently settled in the USA as a professor and medical expert on HIV/AIDS for the past more than 25 years and there can be no reason for me to get “into the MCI”.
As the discussion above along with the supporting attached documents would demonstrate beyond the shadow of any doubt that the MCI president and other high-ranked members have been working in the most unashamed manner to help the grossly tainted ex-MCI chief, Dr. Ketan Desai, to avoid the wrath of justice. It is also abundantly clear that the MCI president is also trying to shield other top MCI members including Dr. Ajay Kumar, Dr. Vinay Aggarwal, Dr. Sudipto Roy and Dr. K.K. Aggarwal who are also involved with blatant lies about CBI only to help Dr. Desai sway the course of justice. The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Health has recently found evidence of rampant corruption inside the MCI. My submission in this representation along with the attached annexures provide additional irrefutable evidences showing how senior members of the present MCI have joined hands with a sinister motive only to save the most corrupt and criminally indicted ex-MCI president, Dr. Ketan Desai. The shameless act by the MCI president also include the brazen disregard of the Vigilance report filed by the MCI-CVO recommending strict disciplinary action against top MCI members who were found guilty for fabrication and lying before the WMA.
This Hon’ble Oversight Committee was established by the Hon’ble Apex Court with the mandate to oversee MCI’s all statutory functions under the IMC Act including the provisions of the MCI Code of Ethics & Regulations, 2002 which stipulates that doctors must maintain highest dignity and honor of the medical profession (Section 1) and that they shall not aid or abet any unethical conduct (Section 6). The discussion above clearly shows that a number of high-ranked MCI members including its president were involved with overtly unethical and unlawful behavior solely with an oblique motive to aid and abet a corrupt and criminally-indicted medical man, Dr. Ketan Desai. Therefore, I most respectfully submit that this Hon’ble Oversight Committee may please take immediate measures to:
A) Remove MCI president, Dr. Jayashree Mehta, and direct for appropriate disciplinary action against her for her direct role in protection of high-ranked MCI members who were found guilty for lying before the WMA as recommended by the MCI-CVO (Annexure- 6).
B) Suspend and direct to take exemplary disciplinary action against senior MCI members, Dr. Ajay Kumar, Dr. Vinay Aggarwal, Dr. Sudipto Roy and Dr. K.K. Aggarwal (IMA Secretary-General) for their devious role in deliberate obstruction in the course of justice only to help Dr. Ketan Desai.
C) Direct the CBI and/or Ministry of Health to take necessary steps to stop Dr. Ketan Desai from assuming the post of WMA president as recommended by the MCI-CVO (Annexure- 6).
D) Any other measures deemed fit and appropriate by this Hon’ble Oversight Commission.
And for this act of your kindness, I shall remain grateful forever.
Most respectfully,
Dr. Kunal Saha
President, PBT
Hilliard, Ohio, USA
Tel: 614-893-6772
Email:
Encl: Annexures 1-8
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