In Gujarat, a case of patients dying due to irregularities in the angioplasty process has come to light. Five people, including the hospital’s CEO, have been arrested in connection with the death of two beneficiaries of Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PMJAY) following a botched angioplasty procedure at an Ahmedabad hospital this month.
With these arrests, the number of people arrested so far in this case has increased to six, including Dr Prashant Vazirani, a visiting cardiac surgeon who performed angioplasty on these two beneficiaries at Ahmedabad’s Khyati Multispecialty Hospital. Dr. Vazirani had already been arrested.
He used to organize camps, he used to have angioplasty.
A police official said three other accused are still absconding, including hospital chairman Kartik Patel, director Rajshree Kothari and doctor Sanjay Patolia. Kartik Patel is abroad.
Commissioner of Police (Crime) Sharad Singhal said the investigation revealed that the hospital organized free checkup camps in villages to persuade PMJAY card holders to undergo angioplasty, although it was not necessary. He said to expedite government approval, patients were wrongly registered in the emergency category and in return, the hospital claimed payment from the government.
He said the hospital had earned Rs 11 crore under the scheme last year, of which 70 per cent of the income came from such claims.
Singhal said the five people arrested on Tuesday are the hospital’s chief executive officer (CEO) Rahul Jain, marketing director Chirag Rajput, marketing executive Milind Patel and his two assistants Pankil Patel and Prateek Bhatt.
What information did the police give?
Jain, a chartered accountant, was nabbed from Udaipur, while the others were arrested from a farm in Kapadvanj taluka of Gujarat’s Kheda district, where they had been hiding since the police investigation began, the police commissioner said. He said this farm belongs to Rajput’s friend.
Singhal said the hospital’s marketing executive Milind Patel and his two assistants used to organize free testing camps on the instructions of marketing director Chirag Rajput. He said that they used to convince people to undergo surgery at the hospital under the PMJAY scheme (which is free), and also used to pay commission to the village sarpanches. This investigation began after the relatives of two patients reported their deaths. These two patients were among seven people who underwent angioplasty on November 11.
