HC asks police to probe complaints against 'doctor'

The Madras High Court today directed police to expedite investigation into various complaints against a man who appeared in TV programmes claiming to be a doctor and having extraordinary powers to cure all diseases.
Vijayakumar had filed a Criminal Original Petition seeking quashing of some complaints against him before the central Crime Branch police.
While hearing the petition, the court rejected the contention of the counsel for Vijayakumar that he had returned amounts received by him to some of the patients.
"In the considered opinion of this court, return of money cannot efface the offence of fraud and cheating committed by quacks," the court said.

"The issue as to whether a native doctor can practice Allopathic treatment or any other system of medicine came up for consideration before the Supreme Court in Private Medical Practitioners Association vs. State of Tamil Nadu and others [(S.L.P. (Civil) Nos.1162 of 2004) which made it clear that these doctors cannot be permitted to practice either modern medicine or any other system of medicine."
The court, which dismissed the prayer of Vijayakumar to quash the complaints, directed police to expedite investigation on all the complaints.
According to the prosecution, each of the victims had approached Vijayakumar with serious ailments to whom he promised that he got divine powers to cure their illness and then took huge sums of money.

"Since each of the FIRs discloses commission of fraud and cheating, the same cannot be quashed in the light of the law laid by the Supreme Court in State of Haryana vs. Bhajan Lal [1992 Supp (1) SCC 335]," the court said.