Kolkata: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Wednesday received the West Bengal government’s approval to frame charges against former R.G. Kar Medical College principal Sandip Ghosh in the multi-crore financial irregularities case.
The permission to the ED to begin the charge-framing process against Ghosh was long held back by the previous Trinamool Congress-ruled and Mamata Banerjee-led government.
However, after the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) came to power, Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari announced that all hurdles towards speedy investigation and ensuring justice in both the R.G. Kar financial irregularities case as well as in the rape and murder of a lady junior doctor of the same hospital in August 2014 will be removed.
The trial process at a special court of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) in the RG Kar financial irregularities case was long pending because of the lack of permission from the previous state government to frame charges against Ghosh. However, with the hurdles cleared now, the trial process against him will begin again.
The ED informed the judge of the special PMLA court about permission being granted by the West Bengal government to start the charge-framing process against Ghosh.
Ghosh was arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), which was first investigating the matter, with the ED making a suo motu entry in the probe process later.
The ED mentioned Ghosh as one of the prime accused in the financial irregularities case in its first chargesheet. But charges could not be framed against Ghosh.
As per rule, if someone holding an important chair in the state has to be framed, the state government’s approval is required to proceed with the trial by filing a chargesheet against him.
The approval of the state health department was required against Ghosh, which was held back for a long time during the previous regime.
In the ED charge sheet, apart from Ghosh, the names of two media equipment contractors, namely Biplab Sinha and Suman Hazra, were also named as accused. This was the first chargesheet by the ED in the matter.
Meanwhile, the CBI had also filed a chargesheet in the case.
(IANS)
