Ahmedabad: Cardiologist Dr Prashant Vazirani, a key accused in the Khyati Hospital scam that came to light following the deaths of two patients in botched angioplasty procedures, has received a reprieve from the National Medical Commission (NMC). The NMC stayed the Gujarat Medical Council (GMC) order debarring Dr Vazirani’s registration for three years.
In Nov last year, two patients from Borisana village near Kadi in Mehsana district died following angioplasty procedures at Khyati Hospital in Ahmedabad. Dr Vazirani performed a total of seven angioplasty procedures, out of which two patients succumbed to post-operative complications.
The deaths exposed a major scam at Khyati Hospital, which allegedly performed unwarranted procedures on gullible villagers to illicitly avail payments under the Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PMJAY) scheme. Ahmedabad police investigating the case arrested a total of nine persons, including Dr Vazirani and all directors of the hospital.
In its order dated April 10, the NMC cited a 2022 judgment by the Nagpur Bench of Bombay High Court in the case of Dr Ashok Bawaskar vs the National Medical Commission of 2021 and a subsequent decision by NMC as a basis for staying the GMC action on Dr Vazirani.
‘In pursuance of the aforesaid directions given by Hon’ble High Court of Bombay, Nagpur Bench in Writ Petition, the Authority considered his (Dr Vazirani) appeal and is of the opinion that irreparable harm or prejudice will be caused to the Appellant if the said order is allowed to be implemented pending the hearing of the appeal,’ read the order signed by Dr Raghav Langar, secretary of NMC.
The order indicated that Dr Vazirani approached NMC through an appeal on December 23 last year against the decision of GMC to bar him for three years from the Register of Medical Practitioners. ‘Appeal dated 23/12/2024 (incomplete appeal application first received from Dr Vazirani Prashant Prakash against the decision dated 28/11/2024 of Gujarat Medical Council to remove the name of Dr Vazirani Prashant Prakash from the register of Medical Practitioners of the Gujarat Medical Council for a period of three years,’ read the order.
The NMC order is being viewed as a clash between the state body and the national body, according to experts. GMC sources said that Dr Vazirani, along with others, was thoroughly probed by experts from institutions such as the state govt-funded UN Mehta Cardiology Hospital and was found to have indulged in procedural lapses. Extensive changes were made by the state health department for PM-JAY affiliated hospitals in light of the case, they added.
Dr Chetan Patel, Vice President of GMC, said that the decision to bar Dr Vazirani was based on the evidence of his involvement in the deaths of patients after angioplasty performed by him at Khyati Hospital. “We have received the order, and we will study it. The hearing on Dr Vazirani’s appeal will take place at EMRB, after which the final decision will be taken by NMC,” he said.
“The GMC took action on Dr Vazirani after a serious complaint filed by the govt of Gujarat itself in the Khyati Hospital case. NMC stay is not in the right spirit. Dr Vazirani is still lodged in Sabarmati Central Jail and is not granted bail,” said Dr Bhavin Kothari, a senior member of GMC for two decades.
Along with Dr Vazirani, two other doctors – Dr Sanjay Patoliya, Medical Director of Khyati Hospital, and Dr Shailesh Anand, a govt of Gujarat official overseeing the implementation of Pradhan Mantri Jan Aarogya Yojana (PM-JAY) in the health department – were debarred by the GMC in the aftermath of the deaths of the patients. A 400-page supplementary chargesheet in the case was filed recently by the investigators.
Senior practitioners aware of the procedure said that in the past, too, some doctors approached NMC or Gujarat High Court after a GMC order.
