A doctor running an institute in Kandivili and accused in the fake vaccination fraud in the Hiranandani Heritage housing society in the area, on Tuesday approached the Dindoshi sessions court seeking anticipatory bail.
Dr. Manish Tripathi, the Kandivili police claim, has been absconding since the society registered a police complaint in the matter. In his plea filed through advocate Adil Khatri, Tripathi called himself a scapegoat and said that the police are trying to protect owners of Shivam Hospital, its owners and their son, who are involved.
In the drive held on 30 May, when 390 residents claimed to be administered fake vaccines, they were told that doctors from Shivam Hospital had come to administer the vaccines as those of another hospital that they believed was conducting the drive, could not make it.
Tripathi said he is falsely implicated, with the intention to cause disrepute to him and humiliate him on social media. A co-accused Mahendra Singh, he said, has misled the housing society by associating him with Shivam hospital. He said his institute runs from the premises of the hospital, but it is run by one Dr. Pataria. He said Singh, in doing so, was trying to save the hospital of which he had been a former employee.
He further pointed out that the Hiranandani society had conducted an unauthorized vaccination drive without permission of the local BMC ward officer and did not follow the due approval process for the drive.
Further, his plea said that the society had taken his name merely on hearsay and had no single communication with him.
“The actual reason for trapping the present applicant is because Shivam Hospital wanted to save their face..” Tripathi said in his plea, adding that the whole case revolves around Shivam Hospital and its owners, their son but that the police is doing their best to protect the rich, powerful, politically well-connected real accused Shivam Hospital, which has access to the CoWin App.
He said he had visited the police station on 15 June, but was physically assaulted and hence did not visit again.
