HC grants bail to 2 docs in AIIMS admission racket

Two doctors, arrested by the CBI for allegedly manipulating admission process for post-graduate courses at All-India Institute of Medical Sciences, were granted bail by a Delhi court on Wednesday.

The court granted bail to doctors Noopur Bajpai and Sonal on a personal bond of Rs 20,000 each with one surety of the same amount.

They have been accused of colluding with the purported mastermind, Dr Mahipal Singh, in manipulating the admission process.

The court contended there was no evidence against them and there was no apprehension that they would tamper with the evidence or hamper the probe.

The bail pleas, however, were opposed by the CBI, which said the nature of the offence was serious. Apart from Bajpai, Sonal and Singh, the CBI had also arrayed two other doctors, Amit Aggarwal and Jyotsana as accused in the case along with Rajiv Ghatak, a data entry operator.

The CBI had booked the accused for allegedly committing forgery, cheating and criminal conspiracy. The agency had also slapped Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) against Mahipal Singh, a 2010 Radiology graduate from AIIMS. He was arrested in June last year and is still under judicial custody.

Rajiv Ghatak, who allegedly smuggled out answer sheets while working as a data entry operator in a company hired by AIIMS to process answer sheets, has secured bail yet. The bail plea of Mahipal Singh is likely to be heard by the Delhi High Court on Thursday.