Kolkata: The Calcutta High Court, on Thursday, is learnt to have sought a report from the Director of IPGMER & SSKM Hospital on the health condition, admission duration and the facilities being availed by the high-profile and politically influential persons admitted at the hospital.
The order passed by the bench of Chief Justice T S Sivagnanam and Justice Supratim Bhattacharya is learnt to have been passed in the wake of two PILs being filed raising concern that the prolonged stay of high-profile and politically influential persons at the hospital is affecting the ordinary people who are seeking medical treatment. Allegations were raised that the SSKM Hospital has become a ‘safe-haven’ for persons arrested or accused in the primary teacher recruitment scam case.
The court’s order read: “In order to get a clearer picture, we direct the director of IPGMER and SSKM Hospital, Kolkata to file a report as to the facilities available and to how long such facilities have been availed by the various patients and a brief note on their health conditions.
After such report is filed in the form of an affidavit, the Court will hear the learned Advocate General and proceed further in the matter”.
The PILs are learnt to have contended that such influential accused persons were being kept at the hospital for a prolonged period to shield them from CBI and ED probe. The petitioners are learnt to have proposed that the accused in such cases could be sent to Central government hospitals for an independent assessment of their health.
The next hearing on the matter is on January 24.