RG Kar scam: Sandip Ghosh moves bail plea at Calcutta HC

Kolkata, Oct 28 (IANS) The former and controversial Principal of state-run RG Kar Medical College & Hospital here, on Monday, moved a bail petition at a single-judge bench of Calcutta High Court.

The single-judge bench of Justice Subhendu Samanta has admitted the petition and the matter might come up for hearing in the second half on Monday only.

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is conducting parallel probes against Ghosh, the first being in the financial irregularities case at RG Kar and the second being in relation to the ghastly rape and murder of a lady junior doctor of the same hospital this August.

In the second case, the main charges against Ghosh are misleading the investigation and tampering with evidence while the initial investigation of the rape and murder case was being handled by Kolkata Police before the Calcutta High Court handed over the charge of the investigation to CBI.

CBI is also probing Abhijit Mondal, the former SHO of Tala Police Station under whose jurisdiction RG Kar Hospital comes, under the same charges. Both are in judicial custody now.

Earlier, Ghosh approached Calcutta High Court seeking a fast-track hearing on his plea for permission to liquidate his fixed deposit to bear the legal expenses in the matter.

However, the Calcutta High Court then rejected Ghosh’s plea for a fast-track hearing. The same matter might also come up for hearing at the single-judge bench of Justice Samanta in the second half on Monday.

Recently, West Bengal Junior Doctors’ Front, the umbrella body of the junior doctors in the state spearheading the movement against the rape and murder issue, handed over several crucial documents on how the state health department ignored previous complaints on the financial irregularities at RG Kar Hospital when Ghosh was at the helm of affairs there.

The documents were a total of 137 pages.

“The documents not only show the instances of fund misappropriation with Sandip Ghosh as the Principal, but also how the state health department ignored complaints by whistle-blowers on this count,” said a WBJDF representative.