Woman, unidentified persons booked in Gian Sagar multi-crore theft case

PATIALA:ON the recommendation of a special investigation team (SIT), the district police have booked a woman and some unidentified persons in a multi-crore theft case at Gian Sagar Medical College, Banur, last year.

After taking over the management from the controversial Giansagar Educational and Charitable Trust in May last year, a Gurugram-based group filed a complaint with Punjab director general of police (DGP) Suresh Arora regarding missing machinery and furniture worth ₹50 crore, students’ record and other goods from medical and nursing departments.

The college remained shut for almost a year in 2017 after it failed to clear dues worth ₹200 crore of its staff. In August last year, a four-member SIT was constituted under supervision of then superintendent of police (headquarters) Kanwardeep Kaur, SP Harwinder Singh Virk, deputy superintendent of police KK Panthay and Sukhminder Singh Chauhan.

In its report, which has been attached with FIR, the SIT said the members visited the college campus thrice to carry physical verification of details as mentioned in the written complaint filed with DGP. “During investigation, it came to fore that exterior and interiors of the hospital had been vandalised, while the medical gas supply line worth over ₹2 crore was found missing. Even in emergency department, several life-saving equipment and ventilators; X-ray machines, ultrasound and CT scan machines were found missing,” the SIT report stated.

The SIT found that even the vital record of students, faculty and other staff members was destroyed, while the sophisticated machinery from ophthalmology department worth ₹4 crore was found stolen.

“The electricity transformers, furniture of nursing and medical colleges, equipment of laboratories, highly expensive equipment from dental college and over 200 air-conditioners from all departments was found missing,” the SIT report stated.

SIT member DSP KK Panthay said during investigation, it has been found that the theft took place between September 2017 and March 2018. “The SIT has found that prima facie, it appears to be the handiwork of technical staff, who have knowledge of using and selling these equipment in the market,” Panthay said. “On the basis of statements recorded during investigation, a woman, identified as Deema, who lived in the employees’ quarters, and some other persons, have been booked under Section 380 (theft) of the IPC. We have also recovered some of the goods from her house,” DSP said.

HOSPITAL RESUMED OPERATIONS IN AUGUST LAST YEAR

After remaining shut for over a year, the hospital resumed operations at its OPD in August last year. In 2017, the state government had withdrawn necessary permissions and certificates after the college management failed to clear pending liabilities worth ₹200 crore of the staff. A total of 1,500 students enrolled in the MBBS and BDS courses were shifted to other medical colleges across Punjab.

Gian Sagar was earlier headed by the family of Nirmal Singh Bhangoo, the main accused in the ₹45,000-crore chit-fund scam by Pearls Group. In May 2018, a Gurugram-based group had approached the state government with a plan to revive the financially ailing institute.