Bangalore: Complaints of insurance fraud running into several lakhs of rupees allegedly carried out by doctors, advocates and a police officer in collusion with "accident victims" have been filed by the Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) at Ulsoor Gate police station. The complaints are the result of enquiries carried out by the KSRTC's security and vigilance unit.

If the complaints prove true, what emerges would be a sordid tale of need and greed. The corporation claims to have uncovered a racket in which poor and working class people, lured by promises of easy money, play into the hands of unscrupulous advocates who then "arrange" false police complaints and fabricated medical certificates. The occupations of the complainants

speak their own story: tailor, painter, carpenter, die-maker, vegetable seller, machine operator, and so on.

KSRTC has already filed three cases against claims made on accidents that involved their vehicles. In one such case (FIR No. 0091), the corporation claims that the eight persons who sought a total compensation of Rs. 27.75 lakh for their injuries in the accident (of August 8, 2003) had given false

addresses and were not at all involved in the accident. It has submitted a letter from the Senior Medical Officer of the Nelamangala Government Hospital (dated August 29, 2005) confirming this finding. It also points out that "when the corporation was contemplating to take action against them," three of the eight had withdrawn their claim petitions.

In another case (FIR No. 417), where the corporation claims that false complaints were filed on behalf of the six "victims" of the accident (of July 3, 2002), it also alleges that a post-mortem report was fabricated. The daughter of the man "killed" claimed Rs. 5 lakh compensation and was awarded Rs. 4.04 lakh by the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal (MACT).

The then medical officer of the Nelamangala Government Hospital Dr. Tulsiramu had issued the post-mortem report conducted on 45-year-old Jani Pasha.

The corporation has submitted a letter from the current authorities of the government hospital, stating that the hospital records show no evidence of such a post-mortem or, indeed, that Jani Pasha had been admitted.

The Administrative Medical Officer of Nelamangala Government Hospital has also issued a letter (dated May 15, 2006) stating that the names of two of the six petitioners, who had produced wound certificates issued by Dr. Tulasiramu, did not exist in any of the registers maintained by the hospital.

KSRTC's complaint (FIR No. 196) against Chandramma is rather unique. The woman, a labourer, had sought Rs. 1 lakh as compensation for "grievous injuries" that had left her "permanently disabled" but MACT, acting on the findings of the vigilance unit, dismissed her claim as bogus. Now, the corporation points out that the same woman, giving a different address, had made another claim, filed by the same advocate, Devaraju, before MACT for the very same accident.

All these accidents for which compensation was claimed occurred in or around Nelamangala. Complaints were filed and charge sheeted at the Nelamangala police station by sub-inspector Rathnakar Shetty, and wounds were certified either by Dr. Tulasiramu at the government hospital or Dr. Raghuveer of the primary health centre in Dobbspet, 23 km away. In Chandramma's case, her wound certificate was issued by Dr. C.S. Nagalaxmamma of the government hospital. Some wound certificates were issued by Dr. Tulasiramu when he was running a private nursing home in Dobbspet after his retirement.

In its complaints, the corporation has named the accused as Mr. Shetty, Dr. Tulasiramu, Dr. Raghuveer and Dr. Nagalaxmamma, and advocates Mr. Devaraju, Manjappa, R. Chandrashekar, L. Sathyanarayana, G.C. Shivashankar and Ganganna.

Director-General of Police has referred all the cases to the Corps of Detectives (CoD) for investigation.

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