Second FIR filed against Abhishek Banerjee over Sebaashray health camps

Abhishek Banerjee and others have been named in a second FIR over the 'Sebaashray' health camps in West Bengal, with police investigating alleged violations of medical regulations, unauthorised operations and the funding of the initiative

Kolkata: A second FIR has been filed in South 24 Parganas district’s Diamond Harbour against Trinamool Congress general secretary and Lok Sabha member Abhishek Banerjee and others over the ‘Sebaashray’ health camp, said the police on Sunday.

This time, the Bishnupur police station has registered the FIR against Banerjee and others, based on the complaint of local BJP leader Abhijit Das (Bobby). The case has been registered under multiple sections.

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The list also includes Banerjee’s absconding executive assistant, Sumit Roy and Trinamool’s candidate from Falta constituency, Jahangir Khan.

Banerjee had launched the Sebaashray initiative to extend free medical treatment to the people of his Diamond Harbour Lok Sabha constituency. Later, the initiative was held in other places across the state.

According to the police, there are 16 complaints against the ‘Sebaashray’ and ‘Sebaashray 2’ health camps.

Based on that, the Bishnupur police station filed an FIR on Saturday night under multiple sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940; the Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (PCPNDT) Act, 1994; the National Medical Commission (NMC) Act, 2019 and the West Bengal Clinical Establishments (Registration, Regulation and Transparency) Act, 2017.

Banerjee is at the top of the list of accused. Many more names are in the FIR. Apart from Sumit Roy and Jahangir Khan, former Trinamool MLA Dilip Mandal is another accused named in the FIR.

The FIR has also been filed against Ayan Ghosh Dastidar, Shamim Ahmed, Gautam Adhikari, Mehbabur Gayen, Nabkumar Betal, Baban Ghazi and several organisations. The police have named some unidentified organisers, doctors, health workers and government employees as accused.

The source of the funds for organising the health camps is being investigated.

Among the accused, Jahangir Khan and Dilip Mandal have already been arrested in separate cases.

According to the police, the chargesheet names Banerjee as the main organiser of the health camp. It is said that he was involved in the planning, management and implementation of this programme as a public figure. Therefore, his role is being investigated.

The first FIR was filed at Diamond Harbour police station on Thursday (July 2). The complainants claimed that no rules were followed in organising the health camp and that multiple rules were violated. The camp was organised without the necessary permission.

It is alleged that permission was not taken even for the use of medicines and medical equipment. In this way, the lives of the common people were put at risk.

According to the complainants, Banerjee and others have been involved in a criminal conspiracy and have run unauthorised medical centres at different times and places. The complainant has alleged that cheating, fraud, illegal provision of services, and illegal use of medicines and diagnostic equipment have been committed. There was no official response from Abhishek Banerjee over the development.