Among the skeletons to tumble out of the bureaucratic closet following the Pune crash case is the checkered past of Sassoon General Hospital’s Dr Ajay Taware who is currently in custody for allegedly switching out the blood samples of the 17-year-old minor driver alleged to be responsible for the death of two IT professionals.
In particular, it is a 2023 recommendation letter written by NCP MLA Sunil Tingre that has raised eyebrows. This is the second time Tingre’s name has come up in the case. Earlier, he was alleged to have ensured the juvenile gets favourable treatment from police.
Dr Ajay Taware’s name was reportedly mentioned in connection with a kidney racket in 2022. He was asked to step down in April of that year when the illegal organ transplant case was exposed at Ruby Hall Clinic the previous month. The alleged racket came to light after a woman filed a complaint alleging she was promised Rs 15 lakh in exchange for a kidney.
The Directorate of Medical Education and Research (DMER) had reportedly recommended the removal of Dr Taware as the medical superintendent of the Sassoon General Hospital, but he was reappointed on December 29, 2023. The appointment seems to have come four days after Vadgaon Sheri NCP MLA Tingre, who is with the Ajit Pawar faction of the party, wrote to state medical education minister Hasan Mushrif. In the letter that has now surfaced on social media, Tingre recommended Dr Taware for the position of medical superintendent at the state-run hospital in Pune.
Dr Taware was also reportedly questioned in connection with a rat bite case at the hospital last month.
As investigation progresses into the Pune car accident and the subsequent attempts at cover-ups, police are seeking details of past investigations and allegations against the doctor.
Apart from Dr Taware, head of the state-run hospital’s Forensic Medicine department, chief medical officer Dr Shrihari Halnor and staffer Atul Ghatkamble, who works under Dr Taware, have also been arrested by Pune police in connection with the car crash case.
Two IT professionals were killed after their motorcycle was hit by a speeding Porsche car allegedly driven by the 17-year-old boy in the early hours of May 19 in Kalyani Nagar area of Maharashtra’s Pune city. The police claim the teenager was drunk at the time of the accident.
The Pune police on Monday said the blood samples of the juvenile driver were thrown into a dustbin and replaced with another person’s samples which showed no traces of alcohol and arrested the two doctors and staffer of the Sassoon General Hospital.
In the letter dated December 26, 2023, Tingre said he knows Dr Taware and noted the latter had previously worked as the superintendent and discharged his duties well during the Covid-19 pandemic. “I request you to kindly consider giving the additional charge of medical superintendent to Taware,” the letter stated.
The letter also had a handwritten note from Mushrif, directing the Sassoon Hospital’s dean to give the additional charge to Dr Taware. Mushrif’s note mentioned that, according to rules, a person of professor rank should be considered for the position, and the (then) current medical superintendent did not fulfil the criteria.
Tinger’s Counter
On Tuesday, Tingre in a statement claimed there was an attempt to give a “different colour” to the issue over the recommendation letter.
“As a public representative, many people approach me for recommendation letters for various reasons such as school admissions, medical treatment, and job transfers. Each recommendation letter includes a note that action should be taken according to the rules, and the department concerned acts only if the request is appropriate,” he stated.
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