Amritsar doctor arrested in case of cheating, forgery for death of patient in 2018

Amritsar: A city-based doctor from a private hospital located in the posh Ranjit Avenue area has been recently arrested on charges of cheating and forgery related to a case of alleged post-operative negligence resulting in a patient's death. 

The complainant in this case, Gokul Chand Aneja accused the doctor and the hospital staff of gross negligence in the post-operative care of his wife, leading to her untimely death in October 2018. A resident of the Airport Road area, Aneja filed complaints in 2021, sparking a two-year police investigation into the 3 years old alleged cheating and forgery case. 

Following the complaint, the doctor and the private hospital were booked under Sections 420 (cheating), 465 (forgery), 468 (forgery for cheating), and 471 (using as genuine a forged document or electronic record) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

Also read- Punjab: Medical Officer, Nurse Booked Under IPC 304A For Death Of Woman Post Delivery

After his arrest, the state health authorities led by Assistant Civil Surgeon Dr Rajinderpal Kaur raided her private hospital and seized records of surgeries, CCTV footage and accounts of financial transactions of the hospital on April 5. 

This raid was conducted based on a complaint from Gokul Chand Aneja who gave a tip-off to the health department that the accused was practising medicine despite his license being suspended by the Punjab Medical Council (PMC) and handed over an application to the district administration and Assistant Civil Surgeon Dr Rajinderpal Kaur in this connection.

The accused license was revoked after the complainant, Aneja submitted a complaint to the Health Department for a high-level probe into the alleged negligence case. A medical board, constituted by the Civil Surgeon, investigated the case and found evidence of tampering with attendance records, false claims of doctor presence in the ICU recovery room, and forged signatures in the hospital treatment file.

In response to the probe report, the PMC suspended the doctor's registration for six months and debarred him from practice due to alleged negligence towards patients as reported by The Tribune.

In the order, the PMC pointed out that “all the council members unanimously decided that Dr Parveen Devgan failed to demonstrate due skills and care towards the patients and it decides to suspend his registration for six months and debar him from practice during the period.” 

The council further stated that the duration may be prolonged in case the accused does not meet the requirements of providing a root cause analysis regarding the patient's death and a laparoscopic hysterectomy training certificate from an accredited institution.

Additionally, it was mentioned that the accused performed surgery on another patient, following the incident, in addition to his wife Sunita. Unfortunately, she also experienced comparable complications post-surgery and eventually passed away.

Later, the complainant urged the police to add Section 304 (death by negligence) of the IPC against him and his other staff members to the FIR and the accused was arrested in connection with this case on Thursday, three years after the initial complaint.

He was produced in a court recently which remanded him in judicial custody. Meanwhile, the police have instructed the PMC to revoke her license as they continue to investigate the case of criminal negligence.

Also read- Woman Dies After Gallbladder Surgery, Doctor Booked Under IPC 304A