Ramadoss to be charged with corruption in medical college admissions

New Delhi, October 7

A court ordered the Central Bureau on Investigation to try former Union Health Ministerand several others for two corruption cases involving medical colleges.

Court told the agency to charge Ramadoss and others for conspiring to illegally sanction admission process for two medical colleges — Rohilkhand Medical College and Hospital (RMCH), Bareilly, in Uttar Pradesh and Index Medical College Hospital and Research Centre (IMCHRC), Indore in Madhya Pradesh —cheating and forgery as well as corruption when he was union minister for health.

The court will frame charges on November 2.

Ramadoss was the union health minister from May 2004 till April 2009 in the UPA-I government.

Former deputy secretary in the Health and Family Welfare Ministry KVS Rao, college chairman SS Bhadoria and employees Nitin Gothwal and Pawan Bhambhani have also been accused of corruption.

However, the court discharged Safdarjung Hospital's doctors JS Dhupia and Dipendra Kumar Gupta and former section officer in Ministry of Health and family Welfare Sudershan Kumar, IMCHRC Director K K Saxena and faculty S K Tongia.

RMCH college chairman KK Aggarwal has also been accused of being involved in the corruption case involving the college.

The court said Ramadoss had abused his power, found to have entered into criminal conspiracy and indulged in criminal misconduct in granting approval for admission of students for MBBS course to two colleges.

However, court discharged two doctors of Safdarjung Hospital, Vindu Amitabh and Sanjiv Kumar Rasania in the case.

Last year, the Supreme Court transferred the RMCH case to Delhi after Ramadoss wanted the trial moved out of Lucknow.

Ramdoss was chargesheeted by CBI for corruption in renewal of RMCH’s admissions procedure in 2008-2009.

He was accused of sending an inspection "clandestinely" without formal orders and declaration forms and manipulated bed occupancy figures to renew the college’s approval.

"In this case, accused (Ramadoss) is prima facie found to have criminally conspired with other accused in granting pecuniary advantage, i.e. approval to the college. Thus, he abused his position as public servant or holding office as a public servant," it said.  — PTI