By Siddhant Mohan, TwoCircles.net
The Uttar Pradesh Special Task Force (STF) has dropped several charges including that of private practice and corruption against Dr Kafeel Ahmad Khan, the senior doctor at Gorakhpur’s Baba Raghav Das Medical College. Dr Khan was alleged to be involved in the infants’ deaths at the Medical College during July and August.
Dr Kafeel is one of the nine accused in the death of over 50 children in Gorakhpur. After the state government’s nod, the UP STF filed charge sheet against medical college principal Dr Rajiv Mishra and Dr Kafeel Ahmad Khan.
The Gorakhpur Police had also filed charge sheets against Dr Purnima Shukla, former Anaesthesia Department Head Dr Satish Kumar, ex-Chief Pharmacist Gajanan Jaiswal, Accounts departments clerks, Sudhir Pandey, Udai Sharma, Sanjay Tripathi and owner of Pushpa Sales Pvt Lt Manish Bhandari.
Mishra was charged under Sections 120-B, 308, 409 of the Indian Penal Code and 7/13 Anti-Corruption Act while Kafeel Khan was charged under Sections 120-B, and 308 of the IPC.
Making the case even more complex, Section 7/13 of Anti-Corruption Act, Section 66 of IT Act and Section 15 of the Indian Medical Council Act in the last week of August were added after the FIR of Director General Medical Education KK Gupta on the recommendation of the high-level committee headed by the Chief Secretary Rajiv Kumar.
According to Investigation officer Abhishek Singh, the investigation team was unable to find any substantial material or evidence against Dr Kafeel. He was not found to be indulging in private practice and corruption and he did not violate any clauses of any IT act.
Dr Kafeel was appointed under the National Health Mission (NHM) as a contractual staff and he was regularised in December 2016.
When the hospital at BRD Medical College ran out of oxygen on the night of August 10, Dr Kafeel tried to manage oxygen cylinders and restore oxygen supply to the hospital to avoid deaths.
Later on, a section of media alleged Dr Kafeel Ahmad Khan of using hospital oxygen for his own hospital Medispring, a charge that Dr Khan denied.
However, Kafeel Ahmad Khan is still charged under section 409 and 120B and is still under judicial custody. Both the sections are non-bailable and Kafeel’s stay behind bars is likely to continue. Section 409, pertaining to embezzlement of government funds, of IPC was added in the chargesheet later on and makes the charged person liable for life imprisonment.