Indore, May 7 (IANS) Three doctors posted at the Rajpur Community Health Centre were caught red-handed while allegedly accepting bribes during a trap operation conducted by the Lokayukta Police in Indore on Thursday.

According to officials, the accused doctors had allegedly been demanding commissions from a private pathology laboratory in exchange for referring patients for diagnostic tests.

The doctors are accused of seeking nearly 50 per cent of the test fees as commission for sending patients to the laboratory, raising serious concerns over unethical medical practices in government healthcare institutions.

The action was initiated following a complaint received by the Lokayukta police. After preliminary verification of the allegations, a trap was laid by the Indore Lokayukta team.

During the operation, the officials caught Dr Amit Shakya allegedly accepting a bribe amount of Rs 8,000, Dr Divya Sai accepting Rs 5,000, and Dr Manohar Godara receiving Rs 12,000.

Police sources said the complainant had informed the anti-corruption agency that the doctors were routinely directing patients to a particular private pathology laboratory and allegedly pressuring them to undergo tests there.

In return, the doctors were reportedly demanding a fixed share from the laboratory’s earnings generated through the referred patients.

After the trap operation, Lokayukta officials recovered the bribe money and initiated legal proceedings against the three accused doctors under the provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act.

“A case has been registered against the three accused under Section 7 of the Prevention of Corruption (Amendment) Act, 2018, and Section 61(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, and further action is being taken,” Lokayukta police said.

Officials said further investigation is underway to determine whether similar practices had been continuing for a long period and whether more people were involved in the alleged commission network.

The case has once again highlighted allegations of corruption and commission-based referral practices in parts of the public healthcare system in Madhya Pradesh.

–IANS

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