Pune doctor, accused of manipulating blood sample, sacked by hospital
Dr. Shrihari Halnor, who is accused of altering the blood sample of the young driver involved in the horrible May 19 accident in Pune, has been fired by the city’s Sassoon General Hospital. Halnor, the top medical officer at the state-run hospital where the kid was brought for medical testing following the accident, was arrested on Monday.
Along with Halnor, Dr. Ajay Taware, the head of the hospital’s Forensic Medicine section, and a staff member, Atul Ghatkamble, were detained.
The dean of Sassoon General Hospital terminated Halnor from service. According to reports, the Maharashtra Directorate of Medical Education and Research is also looking into suspending Taware.
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The three arrested men are in police custody until Thursday.
Doctor allegedly collected 3 lakh from Ghatkamble
The doctor’s suspension came a day after it was revealed that he allegedly collected Rs 3 lakh from Ghatkamble, who worked for Taware. According to police sources, the men confessed to accepting the money when authorities searched their official houses and recovered the cash.
Of the total amount, the Pune Crime Branch recovered Rs 2.5 lakh from Halnor and the remaining Rs 50,000 from Ghatkamble.
However, there was no instant word on how or where the cash came from.
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Communication between minor’s father and Dr Taware
Before the minor’s blood samples were collected, Vishal Agarwal, the teen driver’s father, talked with Dr Taware via WhatsApp and FaceTime calls, as well as a single general call, according to police sources.
The calls were made between 8.30 and 10.40 a.m. on May 19, and the blood samples were taken at 11 a.m.
The two doctors were detained after authorities claimed the teen’s original blood sample was discarded in a dumpster.
The Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) analysis revealed no alcohol in the initial blood sample, raising suspicions.
Later, a second blood test at a separate facility and DNA tests showed that the samples were from two different people. This prompted authorities to believe that the doctors at Sassoon General Hospital tampered with the evidence to protect the accused youngster.
