Hyderabad hospital under scrutiny for issuing Fake birth, death certificates

Hyderabad: In a move against fraudulent medical documentation, the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) has initiated criminal proceedings against Metro Hospital in Tolichowki after uncovering a racket involving the unauthorised issuance of 65 birth certificates and eight death certificates. 

The scam came to light following internal alerts and led to a joint investigation by the GHMC officials and local police. According to the news reports, the inquiry began when police received a complaint related to the suspicious transfer of property based on a falsified death certificate.  

Officials from the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) revealed that the probe traced the certificate back to ‘Metro Hospital’ in Tolichowki—a facility that was officially shut down at the time the document was issued. GHMC, which maintains a list of over 2,000 hospitals authorised to notify the civic body about births and deaths through a centralized portal, had kept the hospital's name active to allow reissuance of lost certificates. However, the hospital exploited this provision.

The inquiry confirmed that the hospital had bypassed required procedures to issue the documents, leading the GHMC to cancel all 73 fraudulently issued certificates. Additionally, the GHMC recommended the cancellation of the hospital’s registration, as well as the medical license of the doctor involved.

Also Read: Victoria Hospital doctor suspended for allegedly issuing Fake Medical Certificates

According to the Hindu, “We keep the hospital’s name in the list even after it is shut down, in order to facilitate the issue of certificates in case the original is lost. This particular hospital has taken advantage of the same, and continued to issue certificates even after its closure,” a senior official said. After finding out the fraud, the hospital’s login has been disabled, the official informed.

Speaking to TNIE, GHMC officials said that verification procedures will be tightened to prevent such incidents in the future.

In a separate case, GHMC has filed charges against multiple registrars and health personnel following discrepancies in reported home births. The suo motu investigation revealed that at least four registered home births never occurred—three in Falaknuma and one in Malakpet circle.

The health assistant responsible for facilitating the false entries has been dismissed from service, and the registrars have been ordered to file criminal cases against parents, neighbours, and even advocates who falsely vouched for the births.

Also Read: Fake Medical Certificates by Doctors: Removal of name from Medical Register not the only Penalty, says court

According to TNIE, the GHMC had identified 74 home births within its jurisdiction. Upon random checks ordered by the then GHMC commissioner, it was found that 38 of these were registered at Shishu Vihar, a facility for orphaned children. The inquiry determined that four registrations were invalid, and the corresponding birth certificates have since been cancelled.