62 Quacks Held 59 Cases Registered In Year Long Crackdown In Assam Himanta Sarma

Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Friday said that 62 quacks have been arrested and 59 criminal cases registered across the state over the past year as part of an intensified crackdown on fake medical practitioners.

“The Assam government’s crackdown against fake doctors is continuing. Any attempt to endanger people’s lives will not be tolerated. So far, 59 cases have been registered and 62 fake doctors have been arrested,” Sarma said in a social media post.

He said the government would continue strict enforcement to protect public safety. “Those involved in such illegal activities should remember that the government will continue to carry out such strict enforcement drives across all sectors to ensure the safety and security of the public,” Sarma said.

“We’re committed to weed out all forms of evils from our society. After an extensive crackdown on drug syndicates and child marriage offenders, we’re now on a mission to crack down on quack doctors to ensure the sanctity of our healthcare system and protect patients,” he added.

The statewide crackdown began in August last year. Since then, more than 20 quacks have been arrested in Cachar alone.

Police found that several of the accused had allegedly been working as senior physicians and surgeons at reputed private hospitals despite possessing no recognised medical qualifications.

Meanwhile, Cachar Police arrested two more alleged fake doctors on Friday, taking the district’s tally even higher.

“The two accused were identified as Bikran Sinha, a resident of Tarapur Raigarh in Silchar, and Biswajit Sinha, a resident of Bantarapur,” Cachar Additional Superintendent of Police (Crime) Rajat Pal said.

According to police, Bikran allegedly ran a clinic at Tarapur Raigarh, while Biswajit operated a clinic at Kabuganj.

The two accused have been booked under Sections 316 (criminal breach of trust), 319 (cheating by personation), 336 (forgery), 340 (using forged documents as genuine), 125 (acts endangering human life or personal safety) and 271 (negligent act likely to spread infection of a disease dangerous to life) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).

Police said further investigation is underway to ascertain whether the accused are linked to a larger network of fake medical practitioners operating across the state.