In an enormous crackdown on organised healthcare corruption, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has unearthed a multi-crore fraud focusing on the Ex-Servicemen Contributory Well being Scheme (ECHS).
The company has booked administrators of a healthcare agency and medical doctors of a number of main non-public super-specialty hospitals for allegedly siphoning off authorities funds by means of fabricated medical claims.
The CBI has carried out the searches throughout Chandigarh and Mohali, unearthing essential proof pointing to an organised community.
In line with a senior CBI official aware of the continuing investigation, who spoke solely to The Tribune on Friday night, the case has been registered in Chandigarh on the premise of supply info concerning large-scale irregularities in ECHS claims.
Named accused in FIR embody Dr Vikas Sharma and Dr Rimple Gupta, each Administrators of M/s Manthan Well being Care, Sector 38, Chandigarh; M/s Manthan Well being Care; Dharam Hospital Pvt. Ltd., Sector 15, Chandigarh; Kare Accomplice Coronary heart Centre, Sector 19, Chandigarh; Manjeet Singh, invoice clerk at Kare Accomplice Coronary heart Centre; Parveen Kumar, invoice clerk at Manthan Well being Care; and unknown officers of ECHS polyclinics/regional centre.
The FIR, a replica of which is with The Tribune, additionally notes that the function of different main hospitals — Amar Hospital, Shalby Hospital, 1H Plus Med Park Hospital in Mohali and Eden Essential Care Hospital in Chandigarh apart from a number of public servants — can be examined through the course of investigation.
The FIR has been registered underneath Sections 120-B (legal conspiracy), 420 (dishonest) and 471 (utilizing solid paperwork) of the IPC, with related provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, together with Sections 13(2) learn with 13(1)(d) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988.
The case stems from credible supply info obtained by the CBI on February 23, 2026, indicating systematic manipulation of ECHS reimbursement processes between 2018 and 2026. Appearing on this, the company carried out a joint shock examine on February 24 at Manthan Well being Care and Dharam Hospital within the presence of ECHS vigilance officers.
The grievance particulars reveal that the accused allegedly operated a well-organised fraud mechanism by misusing emergency admission provisions, manipulating referral methods, fabricating medical and diagnostic information, and inflating therapy and pharmacy payments to siphon off authorities funds.
Modus operandi unearthed
Investigations to date point out that Manthan Well being Care, regardless of not being empanelled underneath ECHS, was allegedly working in collusion with empanelled hospitals. The ECHS desk of Dharam Hospital was successfully run from Manthan’s premises, the place official stamps, clean letterheads and digital signature credentials of the hospital have been discovered.
CBI sources stated claims have been processed and uploaded on the ECHS portal within the identify of Dharam Hospital from Manthan’s facility, pointing to unauthorised diversion of a regulated system.
The FIR additionally flags fabrication of paperwork on a big scale, together with emergency admission letters, prescriptions, pathology stories and discharge summaries. Signatures of medical doctors have been allegedly solid, whereas some diagnostic stories have been discovered pretend, with laboratories denying issuance.
Affected person routing & pretend admissions
The probe has revealed a sample of irregular admissions the place ECHS beneficiaries have been allegedly recognized and routed by means of intermediaries to pick out hospitals. Many circumstances have been proven as emergencies with out enough scientific foundation to safe larger reimbursements.
Particular situations cited within the FIR embody repeated admissions of sure sufferers throughout hospitals equivalent to Dharam Hospital, Kare Accomplice Coronary heart Centre and Eden Essential Care Hospital inside quick intervals for comparable illnesses, indicating orchestrated hospitalisation for declare technology.
Monetary hyperlinks & fee path
Investigators have additionally discovered proof of structured monetary preparations, together with referral-based commissions and revenue-sharing fashions. Paperwork point out a 50:50 revenue-sharing understanding between Manthan Well being Care and Dharam Hospital, together with per-patient funds to intermediaries.
WhatsApp chats recovered through the checks allegedly present prior coordination on affected person admissions, discharge timing and preparation of medical information, suggesting post-facto fabrication to assist inflated claims.
Raids & recoveries
The CBI carried out in depth searches on Thursday throughout a number of places in Chandigarh and Mohali, together with residences of the accused and hospital premises. Officers seized cell phones, unaccounted money, property paperwork, and a big quantity of medical information, billing recordsdata, referral papers and agreements.
Information referring to ECHS beneficiaries, admission patterns and monetary transactions between the entities is now underneath scrutiny to ascertain the total scale of the alleged conspiracy.
The probe is ongoing, with the CBI trying into the potential involvement of public servants and the extent of economic loss to the exchequer, the official added.
