Calcutta HC orders demolition of two Sebashray camp structures linked to Abhishek Banerjee initiative

Kolkata, Sep 2 (IANS) The Calcutta High Court on Wednesday ordered the immediate demolition of two structures set up for the Sebashray health camp initiative, associated with Trinamool Congress General Secretary and Diamond Harbour MP Abhishek Banerjee, at Falta in South 24 Parganas district during the previous Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool government.

The order was passed by a division bench comprising Acting Chief Justice Tapabrata Chakraborty and Justice Atarup Banerjee while hearing a petition filed by Aminuddin Khan, who sought the removal of the structures allegedly built illegally on a playground. The health camps there stopped functioning a long time ago.

In his petition, Aminuddin Khan contended that the two structures had remained in place despite having ceased to operate. He argued that their continued presence had deprived local residents of the use of the playground, which was previously used for school sports events, cricket and football tournaments, as well as various government and social programmes.

After hearing the petition, the division bench ordered the immediate demolition and removal of the two temporary structures built in the name of the Sebashray health camp.

Last year, Abhishek Banerjee, also the nephew of the former West Bengal Chief Minister, Mamata Banerjee, had started Sebashray health camps in different parts of the Diamond Harbour Lok Sabha constituency to provide medical services to the people there. He had constructed several temporary camps before the assembly elections.

Since the change of regime in West Bengal after the assembly polls earlier this year, there had been several complaints of irregularities, including cases of gross medical negligence against the Sebashray health camps.

There were complaints that the camps are run by medical students and interns instead of qualified doctors with proper registration numbers. There were also complaints that the patients treated there developed severe medical complications at a later stage because of the wrong line of treatment at the Sebashray health camps.

In July this year, while addressing the floor of the West Bengal Assembly, Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari had said that the State Health department would conduct a detailed probe of the irregularities at the Sebashray health camps.

–IANS

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