Need for Awareness about unethical Practices by the
Private Medical Colleges
Unethical Practice where and how happening and
destroying Quality of Medical Education in India
Hon’ble SC in a
recent case Rohilkhand Medical College & Hospital,
Bareilly vs. Medical Council of India & Another, made following observation
which are important to know why Quality of Medical Education in India
deteriorated and Faculty Members have been exploited or indulged in unethical
practices. This awareness is important to prevent such practices in future.
SC Observations:
SC observed that we have
noticed that the
Central Government had
accorded approval for 3rd batch of 100 students for the academic year
2008-09 on 26.09.2008, despite the repeated negative recommendations made
by the MCI and before the grant of permission on 26.09.2008, the
MCI was not even consulted. We have indicated the facts to show the
situation that prevailed in the year 2008-09 and the manner in which permission
was accorded for intake of 100 students by the Central Government. [Para 17]
The MCI, following its decision
taken on 04.06.2013, vide its letter dated 20.06.2013 decided to convey its
approval for renewal of permission for admission for the second batch of MBBS
students against the increased intake i.e. from 100 to 150 seats to the College
for the academic year 2013-14. The approval was granted taking into
consideration of the assessment report dated 26/27-02-2013 submitted to the
Board of Governors of MCI subject to certain conditions which are extracted
herein below:
“I am further directed to inform
that you and your institution are fully responsible to fulfil and maintain
norms including the infrastructure both physical and human resource, teaching
faculty and clinical material, etc. throughout the academic
year, as stipulated in Regulation of Medical Council of
India. In case false/wrong declaration or fabricated documents have been used for procuring permission of
the Board of Governors for the increased intake and the
said misconduct is
brought to notice or comes to the
knowledge of MCI at any stage during the current academic year, your
institution is not liable to be considered for renewal of permission
against increased intake for the next academic year and this
renewal of permission against the increased intake for
the next academic year and this renewal of permission against the increased
intake is also liable to be revoked for current academic year. Besides, MCI is
entitled to take all such measures against you and your college/ institution as
permissible under the law.” [Para 19]
Unethical practices: Capitation Fees
We may notice with concern the
unprecedented growth of the Technical and Medical Institutions in this country
which has resulted in widespread prevalence of various unethical practices.
Collection of large amount by way of capitation fee running into crores of
rupees for MBBS and Post-Graduate seats, exorbitant fee, donation
etc, by many of such self
financing institutions, has kept
the meritorious financially poor
students away from those institutions.
Pressure, it is also seen, is
being extended by
various institutions, for
the additional intake of students, not
always for the benefit
of the student community and
thereby serve the community, but for
their own betterment. [Para 24]
We are not commenting upon the
acceptability, or otherwise, of the charges leveled against the Minister,
bureaucrats or the Chairman of the College.
But the fact remains, the CBI after conducting an investigation had to
charge-sheet them under Section 120B, 468, 471 IPC and Section 13(2) read with
Section 13(1)(d) of the PC Act. CBI’s investigation prima facie establishes the
criminal conspiracy between the Chairman of the College and the then Union
Minister of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India, New Delhi along
with the then Deputy Secretary, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, New
Delhi, two doctors, one is the head of Nephrology VMMV and Safdarjung Hospital and the other
is Professor of Department of
Community Medicine, VMMC and Safdarjung Hospital, New Delhi which lead
to the issuance of the order
passed for the additional intake of 50
students for the academic year 2008-09 on 26.09.2008. For the prosecution
of both the doctors necessary prior sanction was obtained from the competent
authority by the CBI. [Para 25]
The CBI, in its charge-sheet,
points out serious infirmities in the
report submitted by the central
team, which conducted
the inspection of the College on
25.09.2008, which are as follow:
“The above chart clearly proves
that accused Dr.Vindu Amitabh and accused Dr.S.K. Rasania were party to the
larger conspiracy and they deliberately by way of limiting the shortage of
faculty to 2% in their report; had glossed over the glaring deficiencies in the
strength of the faculty members (15% i.e. 17 out of 115) and
thereby, facilitated the private
College in getting permission of the
Central Govt. [Para 26]
Their
involvement in the criminal conspiracy is further established by the fact that
during the inspection they did not ask the faculty members as to whether they
(faculty members) were full timers or part-timers/merely called to make up the
members for the purpose of inspection. The investigation has established that
at least 5 doctors, namely, Dr.Harbeer Singh Sodhi, Dr.Anil Madan, Dr.Birendra
Kumar Sinha, Dr.Jamaludin and Dr.Shiv Nath Banerjee, who have been shown as
full time faculty members and residents in the records of Rohilkhand Medical
College, Bareily during 2008, have confirmed that they had never worked as
full-timers in the said College during 2008, but were rather, visiting faculty.
These facts prove that the inspection report of accused Dr.Vindu Amitabh and
accused Dr.S.K. Rasania was perfunctory and biased in favour to the private
Medical College. [Para 26]
The investigation further
disclosed that accused Dr.Vindu Amitabh and accused Dr.S.K. Rasania have
claimed to have done personal inspection of the -wards and the departments. In
their inspection report, they mentioned that the presence (of patients in the
OPDs of all Departments was good, the bed occupancy was about 90% and that the
ICU was full to its capacity. However, during the investigation, physical
verification of 14 patients, who were shown present in the OPD registers on the
date of inspection, i.e. 25.09.2003, was got conducted through the Postal
Deptt. on the random basis. It was revealed that 09 of them were fake or
non-existent. The claim of the accused
doctors of the Central Team of having done personal inspection of the wards
and the departments, which was
one of the important criteria,
on the basis of which they gave a
green signal to the
College, thus turns out to be
devoid of merit and a falsehood. [Para 26]
Fake and forged Documents:
The investigation further
revealed that the Central Team comprising of accused Dr. Vindu Amitabh and
accused Dr.S.K. Rasania has stated
in its report
that it accepted
the photocopies of the declaration
forms, submitted to
MCI, for verification. During the investigation, it has
been revealed that declaration
forms are provided by the College concerned, include details of
all faculty members,
their educational
qualification, appointment letter,
identification documents (like PAN card, etc.) documents in support of
their residence in the Medical College (like ration card, in order to certify
their being permanent faculty members there). [Para 26]
Visiting Faculty used for MCI Inspection:
During the investigation, 5 so
called faculty members (Dr.Harbeer Singh Sodhi, Dr. Anil Madan, Dr. Birendra
Kumar Sinha, Dr.Jamaludin and Dr. Shiv Nath Banerjee) have stated that they
used to be called only for the inspections of the said College. [Para 26]
They were at best, visiting
faculty members. Incidentally, the MCI
rules have not provision for part-timers or visiting faculty members. Though
the - said 5 doctors have owned their signatures on their Declaration Forms, they
have denied receiving the appointment letters shown to be annexed with their
respective declaration forms. They have also stated that the ration cards,
residential certificates, Form-16 (Income Tax) etc. shown as having been issued
in their names, were never given to them. Besides, it has been found that they
are all bogus/fake and forged, as they (the doctors) were neither resident on
the addresses shown in the records nor had they ever applied for any ration
card. The District Supply Officer, Bareilly has denied their issuance and confirmed
that the said ration cards are fake and forged. It is pertinent to mention that
the fake ration cards have been used by the College authorities to falsely
establish before the MCI Inspectors that the said doctors were their permanent
faculty members. Similarly no Form-16 was ever issued to them by the College.
[Para 26]
The investigation further
disclosed that in case of the aforesaid doctors, the appointment letters were
issued in their name by the College authorities without their knowledge and the
details of appointments do not even bear the signatures of their
doctors/employees of the College in the acceptable column. This proves the
fabrication and use of (forged) documents by the College authorities, for the
purpose of obtaining the approval of Govt. of India on the recommendations of
MCI/Central Team deputed by GOI.
However, the accused doctors i.e.
Dr.Vindu Amitabh and Dr.S.K. Rasania of the Central Team in pursuance of
the criminal conspiracy did not confirm the genuineness of the documents put up
by the College authorities and without verifying the documents accepted
photocopies of the Declaration Forms and furnished a positive report in favour
of the College on the very next day. It is pertinent to mention that despite
mentioning about the presence -of such doctors, who were even practicing in
Bareilly and the non-production of the
original appointment letters,
even when asked for, the said Central Team still went ahead to give
clean chit to the College. ” [Para 26]
Capitation fees charged:
SC further added that we can
also take judicial notice of the fact that many a times the medical colleges
and engineering colleges and others are being established after availing large
amounts by way of
loans from the financial
institutions and other borrowings, with no
funds of their own, and once the college gets approval
and students are admitted,
loan availed of is being repaid from the capitation fee charged from the
students and ultimately that amount constitute their
capital. [Para 27]
Many a times, even without any
sufficient facilities they put pressure on the various agencies and the Central
Government and get approval overlooking the regulatory authority,
like MCI, which
adversely affects the
quality of medical education in
this country. For instance, the MCI has taken in the
instant case a consistent view and sent negative reports to the Central
Government, but overlooking all the reports submitted by the MCI, the Central
Government got a report of its own and
granted permission vide its letter dated
26.09.2008. [Para 27]
CBI in its charge-sheet has
categorically and clearly reported that this was done on the basis of bogus,
fake and forged records. CBI noticed that the college authorities had produced
fabricated and forged documents before the inspection team
and the
team failed to verify
the correctness or
otherwise of those
documents. CBI investigation has
revealed that fraud
has been practiced
by the Central team as well as
the college to get the sanction for the
3rd batch of MBBS students for the academic year 2008-09. [Para 27]
References:
