Kolkata, Nov 4 (IANS) The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Wednesday summoned Sandip Ghosh, former principal of the state-run RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata, for questioning in the multi-crore financial irregularities case involving the institute.

Ghosh was asked to appear at the ED office in Salt Lake, on Kolkata’s northern outskirts, later in the day. However, according to information available, the former principal had been given some time by the agency to appear.

The ED and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) have been conducting parallel investigations into the alleged irregularities at the medical college.

The CBI arrested Ghosh in 2024 in connection with the case. He was initially held in CBI custody and subsequently remanded to judicial custody, where he remained for a period. The Supreme Court granted him bail on October 15 this year.

The ED’s summons has brought the case back into focus, with the agency seeking to question Ghosh as part of its investigation.

The alleged financial irregularities, involving several crores of rupees, came to light after a junior woman doctor was raped and murdered on the hospital premises in August 2024. The incident triggered widespread outrage and protests.

It was alleged that government funds were illegally transferred from the hospital’s bank account to accounts of influential vendors and contractors close to Ghosh. Following the allegations, officers of the CBI’s Kolkata Anti-Corruption Branch registered a case on August 24, 2024, and arrested the former principal.

Ghosh later approached the Calcutta High Court seeking bail. A single-judge bench of Justice Tirthankar Ghosh rejected his plea, observing that the alleged diversion of public money directly affected healthcare services for people.

The judge also expressed concern that Ghosh’s political and administrative influence could create a risk of evidence being tampered with and witnesses being influenced if he were released on bail.

Ghosh then moved the Supreme Court, which granted him bail on October 15, 2026. The ED’s questioning will form part of its probe into financial transactions linked to the institute.

–IANS

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