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Pune Porsche crash: Who appointed Dr Ajay Taware? Dean vs minister blame game
Dr Taware and another doctor at the Pune hospital are accused of attempting to cover up the accident by manipulating the blood samples of the minor.
In yet another plot twist in the Pune Porsche accident case, Dr Vinayak Kale, the dean of the Sassoon General Hospital, was sent on a compulsory leave on Wednesday, hours after he revealed that he appointed Dr Ajay Taware as the medical superintendent on the basis of a recommendation by Maharashtra's medical education minister, Hasan Mushrif.
Earlier this month, two techies in Pune died after being mowed down by a 17-year-old boy in his Porsche Taycan car. The teenager was allegedly drunk at the time of the accident.
Taware and another doctor at the Pune hospital are accused of attempting to cover up the accident by manipulating the blood samples of the minor. The police have arrested the duo and an employee named Atul Ghatkamble.
The Maharashtra government on Wednesday suspended the trio.
Hasan Mushrif, who belongs to NCP led by Ajit Pawar, admitted that Dr Taware's appointment was made based on a letter submitted by the party's MLA, Sunil Tingare.
"I do not possess any divine powers so that I would know everything about each person and their deeds in my department," he said, per PTI.
The minister claimed that the MLA had recommended Taware's appointment, and he just approved it.
Mushrif, however, said the dean should have pointed out to the government about the "reputation of this person" when the recommendation was made.
Dr Kale, on the other hand, admitted that he had issued an executive order for Taware's appointment. He, however, said he was just following the minister's order.
Also read: Pune Porsche crash: How doctors ‘changed’ teen driver's blood sample | Sequence of events
"I just followed the order of the minister. That time, the appointment was done as per the orders from the minister," he said.
The two doctors and the hospital employee allegedly swapped the blood samples of the minor. The prosecution recently told a local court that the two doctors had accepted a bribe in exchange for their attempt to save the boy.
Hours after the accident, the juvenile was released on bail under the condition that he would write an essay on road safety. However, after nationwide outrage, he was detained and sent to a reform home.
The police have arrested the boy's father for letting him drive the car without a license. They have also arrested his grandfather for attempting to coerce the driver to take the blame for the accident.
The police claim they have CCTV footage of the teenager driving the car after drinking liquor in two bars. They have arrested the owners of the bars for serving alcohol to the 17-year-old.
