CHENNAI/COIMBATORE/SALEM: In a special drive across Tamil Nadu, 72 fake doctors have been arrested by police over the past 10 days. According to officials of the Director General of Police office, the drive was being carried out against unregistered medical practitioners and those practising allopathic medicine without licence based on the direction of the Madras High Court.
Of the 72 people arrested, Tiruvarur and Thanjavur had 22 cases, eight quacks were arrested from Tiruvallur district, and six were from Salem. The accused included unlicensed siddha and ayurveda practitioners and unlicensed allopathic practitioners.
Speaking to TNIE, P Cephas Kalyan, superintendent of police,Tiruvallur, said, “The court had directed police to take action against siddha or ayurveda practitioners who practise allopathic medicine. We have registered a case based on a complaint from the Tamil Nadu Medical Council.”
“Law permits ayurveda and siddha practitioners to only prescribe allopathic drugs but the medical council has said that some practitioners treat patients using allopathic methods,” he added. Under the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, siddha, ayurveda and unani practitioners are allowed to prescribe and store allopathic medicines. In west zone comprising eight districts, 14 quacks and a clinic owner were arrested on Tuesday.
12 quacks held in Salem range, 2 ‘doctors’ and clinic owner arrested in Kovai range
The eight districts are Coimbatore, Tirupur, Nilgiris, Erode, Salem, Namakkal, Dharmapuri and Krishnagiri. In the Salem range, consisting of Salem, Namakkal, Dharmapuri and Krishnagiri districts, 12 quacks have been arrested from April 1 to till now, police said.
Police said, the arrested were identified as R Panneerselvam and V Varadarajan from Sankagiri in Salem, S Manikandan, K Vasudevan and D Andros from Omalur, and S Munusamy from Mettur. In Krishnagiri district, police had arrested P Nadeem and S Govindaraj of Tirupattur, P Mithunkumar of Bargur, S Kuppuraj of Periya Mottur and M Mohammed Sharif and P Murugesan of Nallampally in Dharmapuri.”
In Coimbatore range, two quacks and a clinic owner at Velliankadu near Karamadai were arrested on Monday. The two quacks claimed they had pursued MBBS and MD courses in Philippines, but failed to produce original documents.
The arrested were identified as M Sathish Kumaran (26) a native of Kattambur village near Thiruppathur in Sivaganga district, G Bhuvaneshwaran (28) of Emaneswaram village near Paramakudi in Ramanathapuram district, and S Jayajothi (35) clinic owner from Iyyasamy Nagar at Jothipuram near Periyanaickenpalayam in Coimbatore district.
They were booked under Sections 15 and 15 (3) of the Indian Medical Council Act and remanded in prison. Sources said, Jayajothi, had impersonated a homoeopathic doctor. Joint director of health Chandra lodged a police complaint and the accused was arrested on Monday.