Under flak from various quarters, the Eknath Shinde-led MahaYuti government on Wednesday suspended two senior doctors from the state-run Sassoon Hospital who were arrested earlier for “manipulating” a blood sample of minor accused involved in the Pune Porsche hit-and-run case.

In a notification issued in the evening the Directorate of Medical Education & Research (DMER), Mumbai, ordered the suspension of Dr. Ajay Taware, Head of the Forensics Department, Dr. Shrihari Halnor the chief medical officer of the hospital, with immediate effect.

Simultaneously, the DMER sent the hospital Dean Dr. Vinayak Kale on ‘compulsory leave’ and in his place, a senior doctor has been appointed.

The action against the two tainted doctors came a day after a  three- member committee -- headed by Dr Pallavi Saple, Dean of Sir J. J. Hospital in Mumbai – was appointed by the Maharashtra government to look into the  “administrative lapses” leading to the manipulation of the crucial blood sample.

Dr Taware and Dr Halnor, who have been charged with the alleged “manipulation” of blood samples and destruction of evidence in the case, are currently in police custody. The police have recovered Rs 3 lakh during the raid conducted on the homes of Dr. Halnor and another hospital peon Atul Ghatkamble. The money  had allegedly been paid by the family of the accused boy for manipulating the blood sample.

The juvenile boy, involved in the mishap, is currently lodged in a Juvenile Correctional Home in Pune, his father Vishal  Agarwal is in judicial custody.

The boy’s grandfather Surendra Kumar Agarwal -- who was arrested on May 25  for allegedly threatening and confining the family driver Gangaram Poojari and forcing him to take the blame for the Porsche car accident on his head in return for a monetary consideration – is in the police custody in the same case. Poojari is a witness in the case.

Incidentally, the suspension of two tainted doctors of the Sassoon Hospital came on a day when the Opposition Congress asked the Eknath Shinde-led MahaYuti government to name the MLA, whose son was accompanying the minor boy when the latter  fatally ran over two IT professionals in the small hours of May 19.

Talking separately to media persons, leader of the Opposition Vijay Wadettiwar of the Congress and Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee chief Nana Patole charged that an MLA’s son had attended the liquor party hosted by the accused minor boy and was accompanying the latter in his Porsche car when the mishap took place.

“Right from the beginning, there has been political interference in the case. A serious attempt has been made to protect the boy involved in the hit and run case. Now, we learn that son of an MLA not only drank with the minor boy but he also accompanied the boy in the Porsche car (that killed two techies). We want the state government to come clean and declare the name of the MLA whose son was accompanying the accused boy,” Waddetiwar said.

Alleging that there was indeed political interference in the investigations into the Porsche hit-and-run case, Patole said: “Before the minor son of a rich person crushed two people under his car, he had consumed alcohol and at that time, the son of the MLA was with him. We also learn that the MLA’s son was also with the accused minor when the mishap took place. That’s why we want the Shinde government to reveal the name of the MLA concerned”.

“This is a serious matter. Two Deputy Chief Ministers (Devendra Fadnavis and Ajit Pawar) find themselves in the dock. They need to provide us the answer,” Patole said.

While Fadnavis holds the crucial state home portfolio, Ajit Pawar heads the NCP – to which the MLA whose son had accompanied the minor accused in his car during the May 19 mishap is reportedly affiliated to.

The demand by Waddetiwar and Patole should be seen in the light of speculation that soon after the mishap, an MLA belonging to the ruling NCP (Ajit Pawar faction) had intervened and spoken to the Yerwada police to water down the case and that he had even asked the police to handle the accused boy with kid gloves. 

Waddetiwar demanded to know as to why Dr. Ajay Taware, Head of the Forensics Department of the Sassoon General Hospital -- who is one of the two doctors arrested for allegedly manipulating the blood sample of the accused minor boy – was not transferred from his position in December 2023, despite the fact that the then Pune Divisional Commissioner Deepak Mhaisekar had made a recommendation to that because of Dr Taware’s involvement in a kidney transplant case.

In a related development, the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT) raised concerns over security of Dr.Taware. “Dr Taware is a crucial witness in the Porsche crash case, he knows many things and his safety is important.