Quack held for running clinic and ‘treating’ patients in Malad slum

The accused, identified as Sukesh Gupta, has only one ‘Naturopathy’ degree issued by Universal Health Care Institute in Delhi in 2015. Gupta has allegedly been running his clinic from the ground-floor room of a SRA building located in Shivshahi area in Malad (East), which comprises a vast slum pocket.

Gupta allegedly gave medicines for Rs 30 to Rs 40 to slum-dwellers which made him popular among them. The police and BMC raided his clinic on March 11 and found 34 types of medicines, including tablets, multivitamins, capsules and syrups. At the time of the raid, Gupta was checking a woman with a stethoscope, the police said.

Gupta told police that the clinic was owned by Dr Momin Tausif Zaman and he was running it in Dr Zaman’s absence. Gupta also showed police a BAMS certificate, which is being verified. Gupta was arrested and subsequently granted bail by a court.

The complainant in the case, assistant medical officer in BMC, Dr Kusum Gupta, told The Indian Express, “In the past, we had given him a warning after receiving complaints that he runs a clinic. Back then, he got away saying he was only an assistant. The local people were so blinded by his influence that they were pressuring us not to book him. I had to explain to them that he has no degree and that any practicing doctor has to be registered with the Maharashtra Medical Council.”

The complainant said there were more quacks who are operating without any degree in the same slum pocket and efforts are being taken to crack down on them as well.