Three senior PGIMS doctors suspended

ROHTAK : Three senior doctors, two of whom are heads of department, have been suspended by the Post Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences (PGIMS), Rohtak, over complaints of demanding cash for surgery and private practice.

Dr RK Karwasra, head of surgery department, Dr RC Siwach, head of orthopaedics department and Dr Amit Mann of nephrology department were suspended on reports submitted by the National Human Rights Commission after inspection of the hospital over complaints sent to them by several patients.

Sources said NHRC member Avinash Rai Khanna had visited the hospital in 2016 when the commission had received complaints of shortage of medicines under the Mukhyamantri Mufat Ilaj Yojana (CM free treatment scheme). While the commission had found satisfactory counters of medicine at the hospital, it got complaints from patients about doctors demanding cash for surgery and forcing patients to get treatment from their private practice.

The commission had received complaint against Dr Mann for sending his patients to his private clinic for dialysis. Sources said Dr Mann, who earlier was the head of nephrology department, was suspended by the hospital on private practice complaints earlier this year as well. However, he had got a stay order on his suspension from the Punjab and Haryana high court, following which he was reinstated as a senior professor.

In case of Dr Karwasra, the complaint was about him taking money from a patient for his stomach cancer surgery.

Dr Siwach has been suspended over complaints against him during his tenure as the director at BPS medical college for women at Khanpur Kalan in Sonepat.

A PGIMS official said the complaints against the doctors were sent to chief secretary, Haryana, on whose directions the three doctors were now suspended with immediate effect.