Quack Menace: 5 fake "senior doctors" held after raid on illegal clinics

The investigating team came to know that the five doctors of the five clinics were not registered with the Maharashtra Medical Council (MMC).

The fake doctors were operating in the sprawling slums of Govandi-Shivajinagar areas of north-east Mumbai. After receiving a tipoff, police inspector H.M. Nanavare and constable N.B. Sawant investigated the matter discreetly and informed the BMC Assistant Health Officer of M-East Ward Dr. Priya Koli.

A team of doctors also accompanied the raiding police officials while visiting the clinics. After reaching the facilities, the team tried to verify the details of the accused, however, they came to know that the accused claiming themselves to be senior doctors actually did not have any valid qualifications to practice medicine, reports IANS. The doctors were also charging exorbitantly for various kinds of treatment from the patients.

An official said that the doctors had no medical degrees or certificates or registration with the Maharashtra Medical Council or any other authority and were found to be impersonators. However, they were blatantly 'treating' patients of all kinds of diseases, injuries or wounds, administering injections, giving or prescribing medicines, advising surgeries, etc. The teams raided the locations separately and nabbed the five 'senior' doctors -- all males, aged between 43 and 53.

The police also recovered large quantities of medical stuff including stethoscopes, injections, bottles of drips and injections, surgical trays, all types of oral drugs and syrups, antibiotics, and even certain sensitive or restricted use drugs, medical literature, etc. from the premises that were searched.

The five accused have been booked under various sections of the Indian Penal Code and Maharashtra Medical Practitioners Act, 1961 and further investigations are underway.