In a significant development, the West Bengal health department has suspended Dr. Sandip Ghosh, the former principal of RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, following his arrest by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on charges of financial misconduct. The suspension, announced on Tuesday, comes just 26 days after the tragic discovery of an on-duty woman medic’s body inside the hospital premises, which has sparked allegations of rape and murder. Ghosh’s suspension adds a new layer of intrigue to the ongoing investigation, which has already seen the arrest of three others connected to the case, including his security guard and two hospital vendors. The Calcutta High Court had previously ordered the transfer of the investigation into the alleged financial irregularities at RG Kar from a state-run Special Investigation Team (SIT) to the CBI, raising further questions about the possible connections between the corruption allegations and the medic’s untimely death.
The West Bengal health department suspended former principal of the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital Sandip Ghosh on Tuesday, a day after the CBI arrested him for alleged financial misconduct.
Ghosh was suspended 26 days after the body of an on-duty woman medic, who was allegedly raped and murdered, was found inside the seminar hall of the state-run RG Kar Hospital on August 9.
“In view of the ongoing criminal investigation against Prof (Dr) Sandip Ghosh, ex-principal, RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, he is placed under suspension… with immediate effect,” an order said.
The Calcutta High Court on August 23 ordered the transfer of a probe into the alleged financial irregularities at RG Kar Hospital from a state-constituted Special Investigation Team (SIT) to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
The direction came in response to a petition by former deputy superintendent of the facility, Dr Akhtar Ali, who prayed for a probe by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) into multiple counts of alleged financial misconduct at the state-run institute during Ghosh’s tenure as its principal.
Ghosh served as principal of RG Kar Medical College from February 2021 to September 2023. He was transferred from RG Kar in October that year but inexplicably returned to that position within a month. He held his position at the hospital till the day the hospital doctor was found dead.
Ali had moved the High Court amid speculations on whether the alleged rampant corruption at the institution was in any way connected to the RG Kar medic’s death, with the victim being privy to the misconduct and threatening exposure.
Besides Ghosh, the CBI on Monday arrested three others in the same case. They are his security guard and two vendors who used to supply materials to the hospital.