‘Fake’ cardiologist’s lies begin to unravel: Applied for name change, invented wife and kids, treated ex-Chhattisgarh speaker

He was arrested this week for allegedly forging medical qualifications and getting a job at Damoh’s Mission Hospital. According to investigators, he assumed the name Dr Narendra John Camm, allegedly stealing the identity of UK-based cardiologist and professor John Camm.

“He claimed that he went to London in 1999 and did a medical course, which did not qualify him to practice in India, so he forged an MD degree. He has been trying since 1999 to change his name to Professor John Camm from the UK. He also submitted documents to change his name to relevant authorities in Kanpur but did not follow through,” Damoh Superintendent of Police Shrut Kirti Somavanshi told The Indian Express.

On Tuesday, the real Dr Camm told The Indian Express, “The identity theft cropped up first about five years ago – at least to my knowledge. It was very disconcerting.”

Somvanshi said, “The accused tried to change his identity to get an English-sounding, Christian name to get more respect among the Indian community and better job prospects.”

According to police, Yadav told them that after he returned from London in 2004, he worked in multiple hospitals in Delhi, then visited Chicago for a course before returning to practice in Hyderabad. Around 2010, Yadav claims to have visited Germany’s Nuremberg for another course and returned to India around 2013.

This was around the time he was banned by the Indian Medical Association, police said.

“He was booked in an IT Act case in Noida and was banned. He tried to start his own company, which did not take off. When he was banned, he decided to pursue his old dream of changing his identity to John Camm. That’s when he made a Twitter account (under his name) and began tweeting,” the officer said.

One of the tweets said that Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath should be sent to control the riots in France. The post gained traction after the CM’s account retweeted it.

Police said the accused would work in hospitals for a few months before quitting and moving to another city. In 2019, Yadav was arrested near Chennai after more than 100 employees of a private hospital alleged that he had withheld their salaries.

At the time, a woman identified as his wife was made a co-accused and is now believed to be absconding, police said.

SP Somavanshi said, “This woman never married him and is currently in the UK. He does not have a wife or a child. They are all based on forged documents.”

Chhattisgarh link to ex-Speaker’s death

He also practised in neighbouring Chhattisgarh, where, among his various patients, was former Speaker Rajendra Prasad Shukla. According to his family, Shukla, then the sitting MLA from Chhattisgarh’s Kota Assembly, was treated at the Apollo Hospital in Bilaspur in 2006 and died less than a month after surgery.

The suspect allegedly treated several people at the hospital, which has now been served notice.

“My father (Shukla) died in August 2006 at Apollo Hospital after being kept on a ventilator for 18 days. He was treated by Dr Narendra Yadav,” Shukla’s youngest son Pradeep (63), a professor, told The Indian Express over the phone.

According to Pradeep, his father, the first speaker of Chhattisgarh, was “made to believe it was an emergency”.

“They said my father had a mild heart attack and performed a surgery which went on for two hours. My father fell unconscious, and soon after, he was put on a ventilator. I knew the surgery went wrong, but my father was 76 years old, and we trusted the hospital,” said Pradeep.

The family has now written to the district administration for action. Police in Bilaspur have confirmed they received a complaint.

“I want my complaint to be treated as an FIR and the strictest punishment to be given to him and the authorities at the hospital if they are found guilty. They have made a mockery of the system… They took several lakhs for my father’s treatment. Back then, the medical association here told me he is a fraud, but he was transferred,” Pradeep claimed.

Dr Pramod Tiwari, the Bilaspur Chief Medical Health Officer (CMHO), confirmed that the hospital had been issued a notice. “We learnt about his arrest from the news. We have served a notice to the hospital asking them a range of questions. They have been given three days to reply,” he said.

When contacted, Devesh Gopal, the public relations officer of Apollo Hospital, said, “We have received the notice and will provide information. We will not comment further.”