There seems to be little love lost for the Trinamool Congress member who is the latest to be arrested by the CBI in its probe into R G Kar Medical College and Hospital. On Thursday evening, as part of the investigation into alleged financial irregularities at the hospital, the agency arrested Ashish Pandey, a doctor, a former staffer of R G Kar and a TMC Youth Wing member. The junior doctors who have been leading protests over the rape and murder at R G Kar, and demanding an overhaul in the running of the government hospital, have accused Pandey of being the kingpin of “the threat culture” at R G Kar. They have also accused him of regularly harassing junior doctors. A junior doctor of R G Kar told The Indian Express: "Pandey is the main man after Sandip Ghosh who is the root of all the corruption and threat culture (at the Medical College and Hospital). In government medical colleges, qualifying for a house staff position is very tough, but Pandey got that opportunity twice because of the unlimited influence he has within the state health system." Asked about Pandey and whether they were planning any action against him, Trinamool Chhatra Parishad (TMCP) state president Trinankur Bhattacharya said, "He was not our leader, not even a prominent face. He may be a general member of the TMCP. There are thousands of members like Pandey in the TMCP. So, what step will we take against him!" On September 25, when Pandey was summoned by the disciplinary committee of R G Kar for questioning, he was accosted by the protesting junior doctors. An alumni of R G Kar who now works as associate professor at its hospital agreed with the allegations of the junior doctors, recalling the time Pandey and his team “forcefully closed the alumni office and physically heckled former students”, allegedly at the best of then R G Kar principal Sandip Ghosh. “They also filed an FIR against us. Instead of taking steps against Pandey and his team, police harassed us." Former TMC MP Santanu Sen, who has been critical of the party’s handling of the R G Kar episode, said Pandey’s arrest was not surprising. "This famous Ashish Pandey was the hero of corruption of various orders, including intimidating juniors, extorting money in the name of festivals, controlling who failed and cleared exams, leaking questions, ragging in hostels, illegally providing house staff positions, beating senior doctors, and locking the office of the alumni association." Sen also accused Pandey of running a personal campaign against his daughter, a student at R G Kar, and him. “Pandey tried to tarnish my image, campaigned against me. They circulated false posters in my name, and came to beat me." The CBI first interrogated Pandey over alleged financial irregularities at R G Kar, along with other TMC doctor leaders such as Avik Dey and Birupaksha Biswas. Before Pandey, the CBI had arrested Sandip Ghosh, who was the principal of R G Kar when the rape and murder happened, and three others in connection with its investigation into alleged financial irregularities.
