Fake doctor arrested in Digapahandi

Berhampur: Police arrested a 29-year-old fake doctor, Subhrajit Panda, who was running a clinic at Dengaosta Square under Digapahandi police station in Ganjam district.

He was treating patients at the clinic twice a month run by Babool Medicine Stores and issuing prescription under caption and letter pad mentioning himself as renowned doctor with foreign qualifications as specialised physician of orthopaedic and spinal surgery, said Berhampur SP Dr Saravana Vivek M, who is also a physician.

Subhrajit has no authorised registration number of a qualified doctor as per provision of Odisha Medical Registration Act, the SP said.

Subhrajit is a native of Sanda in Dhenkanal district, police said. “We have registered a case under various sections,” the SP added.

Police have seized letter pads, visiting cards, flex banner, fake medical qualification documents, Aadhaar card and a car from the fake doctor. Stethoscope, syringes and medicines have also been seized from the clinic.

Police swung into action after Simanchal Sahu of Chanameri under Digapahandi police station filed a police complaint against Subhrajit. Simanchal treated his mother Kumudini for a fracture of wrist joint in that clinic. But her health deteriorated due to faulty diagnosis and wrong treatment process. Kumudini was later shifted to Berhampur. Simanchal subsequently came to know that Subhrajit was a fake doctor. Dipti Ranjan Meher, Digapahandi IIC, who investigated the clinic as suggested by the Berhampur SP, found Subhrajit to be a fake doctor.

Subhrajit, a microbiology student, completed Plus Two and started treating people after learning to use medicines from the medical representatives to make quick money. He was charging Rs 300 from the patients for 5-minute consultations, sources said. Subhrajit was also running Best Polyclinic at Ranihat in Cuttack. He possessed two rented houses at Cuttack Naya Bazar and Sanakhemundi in Ganjam district. Police have raided all his clinics and rented houses.

Subhrajit was earlier arrested by Chilkaguda police of Telangana in February 2020 for attending a doctors’ meet by posing as a doctor and team member of the World Health Organisation (WHO) at Gandhi Medical College in Hyderabad. Chilkaguda police charged him under sections 170/ 419/ 420/ 467/ 468 IPC of Telangana Medical Practitioners Registration Act and forwarded him to court. He was granted bail in that case, sources said.