Kolkata, Jan 30: A trial court has slapped a show-cause on Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) for procedural lapses in passing on information to the court about the West Bengal government’s nod for framing charges and trial process against former R.G. Kar principal Sandip Ghosh in the case related to financial irregularities in the institution.

On January 28, the CBI informed Calcutta High Court’s single-judge bench of Tirthankar Ghosh about the clearance from the state government to start the charge-framing and trial process.

Now, the trial court has taken objection as to why the CBI has not informed the same court about the development.

It is learnt that the judge of the trial court has directed the Central agency to give a written explanation for why the same court was informed about it.

The CBI officials investigating the case received the no-objection certificate from the state government on the evening of January 27 and informed the Calcutta High Court about it the next day. On that day, CBI also submitted a report to the Calcutta High Court on the progress in the R.G. Kar financial irregularities case.

A single-judge bench of the Calcutta Court directed officials to complete the framing of charges and begin the trial process within a week.

Besides CBI, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) is also conducting a parallel probe into the case.

While CBI started its investigation following an order by the Calcutta High Court, the ED made a suo motu entry to investigate the money laundering angle after filing an enforcement case information report (ECIR).

Altogether five persons, including Sandip Ghosh, his assistant-cum- bodyguard Afsar Ali, private contractors Biplab Sinha and Suman Hazra and a junior doctor Ashish Pandey, have been named by CBI and all are in judicial custody.

The main charges in the case include manipulation in the tendering process of R.G. Kar, getting infrastructure-related work done by private contractors bypassing the state Public Works Department against the hefty commission, smuggling of bio-medical wastes from the hospital outside and finally selling organs of the unidentified bodies sent to R. G. Kar morgue for post-mortem in the open market at premium prices.

New Delhi, Jan 30: Delhi Police have filed a case after a vehicle labelled “Punjab government” was intercepted with cash, liquor and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) pamphlets, an official said. The Punjab government, however, said the car had a fake registration plate and was different from the registered model.

The car was found on Wednesday and a large amount of cash and liquor was seized, police said.

The car had a “Punjab government” sticker, said the officials, adding that AAP pamphlets were also found in the car.

Delhi Police said the vehicle was found parked outside Punjab Bhawan on Copernicus Marg in the national capital. When searched, the cops said they found cash amounting to Rs 8 lakh, liquor bottles with Punjab stamps, and AAP pamphlets inside the car.

As per the model code of conduct in force in Delhi ahead of the Assembly elections, people are barred from carrying more than Rs 50,000 in cash.

A case has been registered at the Tilak Marg police station.

The Punjab government soon issued a denial after the news came out. The government said in a statement that as per the official record, the car was registered in the name of Major Anubhav Shivpuri, who was posted at the Army Dental College, Pathankot, three years ago. He is a permanent resident of Khadki in Maharashtra, it said.

“It has come to the knowledge of the Department of Transport (Govt of Punjab), that a vehicle carrying registration number PB35AE1342 has been apprehended in Delhi carrying illegal liquor and some unaccounted cash. It has been alleged in the media reports that the vehicle has a sticker of Punjab Govt on it,” the statement read.

The Punjab government said the registered vehicle model on the registration number PB35AE1342 was the Ford Eco Sport of make year 2018 but the actual vehicle apprehended by the police belongs to the Hyundai Creta series. “This confirms that the vehicle’s number plate is forged and fake. High-Security Registration Plate(HSRP) is mandatory for all vehicles and the registration plate visible in the video is an ordinary one, without the features of HSRP, hence easy to forge. Also, we have searched our records and found that no such vehicle is owned or hired by Govt of Punjab. The apprehended vehicle does not belong to Govt of Punjab at all.”

The AAP also released a statement, saying the car seizure was a “planted stunt and utterly bogus”.

Mumbai: Mumbai’s Saboo Siddik Hospital has become a topic of discussion these days. Although this hospital is called charitable, the fees here are no less than any private hospital. This hospital, run by the Muslim Ambulance Society, has been a victim of controversies many times before. Patients admitted here have to pay a huge amount in the name of charity hospital. According to the information received, many illegal activities have taken place in this hospital and now BMC has become active regarding this. BMC has issued a show cause notice to this hospital. If sources are to be believed, the place where the MRI and pathology lab has been built is actually a car parking space which the hospital administration has occupied and converted into a lab and given it on contract to a private company which arbitrarily charges money from patients in the name of MRI and blood tests. Along with this, the upper floor of this hospital has been illegally converted into a general ward. In this connection, Mumbai Municipal Corporation’s Executive Health Officer Dr. Daksha Shah has ordered an inquiry into this.

According to the information, many officials of the health department of B ward have also been involved in this whole matter. Although, according to the hospital, they had got the illegal works done in the parking lot approved from BMC, but they have failed to show the documents of the same. On which BMC has now asked the hospital for all the documents on the basis of which this illegal construction was made legal and pathology and MRI centers were built on it. If reports are to be believed, a huge amount is charged from people in the MRI center and pathology lab. If patients are to be believed, they have to pay a charge of three and a half thousand to fifteen thousand for getting an MRI done.

In the same pathology lab, 1500 is charged for CBC and a huge amount is charged from people for doing other tests. This business of loot in the name of charity has been going on for many years. Which has now come to the notice of BMC. A huge amount is being charged from people by occupying the upper floor under the guise of general ward. Apart from this, fire systems and storage items have been kept in the entire building on the stairs, which is against government norms. The hospital also does not have the license of Bhabha Atomic Research Center, which is said to be necessary for X-ray. Now it remains to be seen how BMC puts a stop to this story of looting that has been going on for many years.