Two days after the Kolkata Police busted a fake Covid-19 vaccination camp, where actor and TMC MP Mimi Chakraborty and many others had taken the jab, investigators brought the accused to the site and seized vials that have been found to be ‘dust and some liquid’.
“Preliminary reports by the health department suggest that these (seized vials) are not Covishield and that it is dust and some liquid,” said Atin Ghosh, member of Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) Board of Administrators. Mimi Chakraborty was told that she was administered Covishield along with 200 people.
On Thursday evening, the Kolkata Police brought the accused Debanjan Dev to his office in Kolkata’s Kasba area, where the fake vaccination camp was busted on Tuesday. The accused, who posed as an IAS officer, used the premises as his office to conduct the camp.
Palash Baran Maity, Assistant Director, Forensics, said, “As per protocol, we have seized various items. Different types of vials were seized, along with gloves and sanitisers.”
Another case against Debanjan Dev has been registered at Amherst police station and the case has been taken over by the detective department of Kolkata Police.
Debanjan’s office was raided and a large number of vials of Amicacin injections and fake labels of Covishield were found. Many people had taken the vaccine in the last two months since the vaccination camp was organised under the banner of KMC and are now being examined by doctors for possible health issues.
“We took the vaccine. Nothing has happened to us. We were told the certificate would come in a few days,” Pintu Saha, a vaccine beneficiary, said.
Meanwhile, Dr Debashish Barui, KMC doctor, said, “As of now, there are no complications (among the beneficiaries). However, most of them who took the vaccine are panic-stricken.”
While most have no complications, the question is on the components of the fake vaccine and will it adversely impact beneficiaries.
Debanjan Deb, the fake IAS officer who conducted a dubious vaccine camp in Kolkata and duped TMC MP Mimi Chakraborty among others, has been found to have links with top leaders of the ruling TMC in Bengal.
Photographs of Debanjan Deb hobnobbing with the top leaders of Trinamool Congress are now doing the rounds on social media, prompting opposition BJP to launch an attack on the party.
Debanjan Deb, who has been arrested by Kolkata Police, had posted various photographs with senior ministers, including Firhad Hakim, Subrata Mukherjee and others on his Twitter handle.
Apart from Hakim and Mukherjee, IMA president Dr Shantanu Sen and Avishek Dalmiya, president of Cricket Association of Bengal, have also been spotted in some of the photos that Debanjan Deb had uploaded on social media.
BJP hits out at TMC
As the photos went viral, BJP was quick to attack the TMC government, questioning the presence of multiple leaders with Debanjan Deb. BJP MP Saumitra Khan also demanded a probe by the central agencies.
With minister Hakim Firhad
Rajya Sabha MP Swapan Dasgupta said in a tweet, “More details of the fake IAS & fake vaccination scandal in Kolkata awaited. Prima facie, it suggests that a picture of @MamataOfficial and display of Trinammol colours secures a blank cheque to do just about anything in W Bengal. This now includes selling coupons for free vaccines.”
“How the vaccine is available in the open market? Trinamool MP and MLA are involved in this case. This is being done in their presence. If this case is investigated by the central agency, the correct information will come out,” wrote Saumitra Khan on Twitter.
Dr Shantanu Sen, ex-president of IMA and TMC’s Rajya Sabha MP, whose photograph with Deb is also being circulated, rebutted the claims.
Dr Sen said that during the first wave of Covid-19, many organisations and individuals voluntarily donated masks, sanitisers, gloves, PPE kits to the Indian Medical Association for distribution amongst hospitals, doctors and other institutions.
“This man might have been one of those who came individually or with others, introducing himself as a social worker and not an IAS,” Dr Sen said.
“Moreover, as a public representative, we often come across many unknown people at many places who take photographs with us, even sometimes without informing us,” said Dr Sen.
What is the fake vaccine row?
Debanjan Deb, who posed as a fake IAS officer, did his schooling from Taki House in Sealdah and Charu Chandra College. He started a course on Genetics from Calcutta University, but dropped out.
He later joined a distant education programme at Vidyasagar University, but left that midway. As per police sources, Deb has claimed that he started making music albums as well.
The police arrested 28-year-old Debanjan Deb on Wednesday for allegedly posing as an IAS officer and organising a Covid-19 vaccination camp in Kasba area, where actor and Trinamool Congress MP Mimi Chakraborty had also got her jab.
Mimi Chakraborty, who was invited to attend the camp, said she became suspicious about the vaccination process as she did not receive the customary SMS that is sent to people after they are administered a dose, and informed the police.
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India needs to reform its Police and judges to create more efficent system to arrest and punish the offenders otherwise there will be more talks than actions.