Mumbai vaccination scam: 8th FIR registered, two doctors booked

Mumbai Police on Wednesday registered the eighth first information report (FIR) in connection with the fake vaccination scam

Mumbai Police on Wednesday registered the eighth first information report (FIR) in connection with the fake vaccination scam.

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The Samta Nagar police have booked Dr Manish Tripathi, Dr Anurag and two of their staff members for organising an unauthorised vaccination camp at Intercontinental Diamond LLP in the Ashok Nagar area of Kandivli (East).

The police had received a complaint about the suspected fake vaccination camp on Monday and had written to Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) seeking clarity on whether the vaccination camp was organised without the civic body’s permission.

Anandrao Hanke, senior police inspector of Samta Nagar police station said that after receiving confirmation from the BMC that the camp was unauthorised, they have registered FIR against four people including two doctors for holding the camp for 580 employees of Intercontinental Diamond LLP and failing to give them the certificates.

“We are recording statements of the authorities concerned to find out who contacted them and who organised the camp,” said Hanke.

On Monday the police received a complaint letter from Intercontinental Diamond LLP claiming that they had been “vaccinated” by the same group which has administered fake vaccines to several people and did not receive the certificates.

Meanwhile, Dr Shovraj Pataria and his wife Nita Pataria, owners of Shivam Hospital, and Dr Manish Tripathi were remanded to the custody of Kandivli police for two days by a magistrate court. While other accused were remanded to judicial custody till July 8.

The Kandivli police argued in the magistrate court that when they arrested Dr Pataria, they found two vials of Covaxin and one vial of Covishield in his pocket. “We are investigating the sources from where the accused procured the vials,” said a police officer.

On Tuesday, Dr Manish Tripathi was arrested by Kandivli police after the Dindoshi sessions court rejected his anticipatory bail plea.

The vaccination scam came to light after Hiranandani Heritage society in Kandivli approached the police complaining they were duped by Mahendra Singh and four others who administered fake vaccines to their society members on May 30. The society members claimed they received the vaccination certificates, but they had names of different hospitals and different dates, but when the residents checked the Co-WIN portal, their status was shown as “yet to receive the first dose.”

Thereafter, six more cases have been filed at Versova, Borivli, Bangur Nagar and Khar police stations against the same group. So far, police have arrested eight accused and are on the lookout for two more.