ED opposes Anil Deshmukh's plea for treatment in private hospital

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Monday opposed the plea filed by former Maharashtra home minister Anil Deshmukh seeking permission to avail of medical treatment at a private hospital.

The ED said that Deshmukh can get similar treatment at the state-run JJ Hospital in Mumbai. The anti-money laundering agency submitted its affidavit before a special court here. The ED stated that the doctors at the JJ hospital, where Deshmukh was treated, suggested surgery for his shoulder but the same need not be done in an emergency. The ED further claimed that doctors at the JJ Hospital are well-equipped and qualified to perform the surgery and hence Deshmukh need not be admitted to a private hospital.

Deshmukh's advocate Aniket Nikam, however, argued that it was the minister's right to get medical treatment at a hospital and doctor of his choice. The special court will pass its order on the plea on Tuesday.

Deshmukh (72) is currently in judicial custody following his arrest by the ED last November in a money laundering case. The ED's affidavit said that the agency had made enquiries from the doctors at the JJ Hospital where Deshmukh was admitted for his shoulder pain. As per the agency, Deshmukh's case was not an emergency surgery as he has a long history of shoulder dislocation, and surgery can be considered in the future.

“It is further submitted that Dr Ankit Marfatia, Expert Arthroscopy Surgeon and Assistant Professor of JJ hospital, has performed 30-35 shoulder related surgeries similar to that of the applicant (Deshmukh) and he has also done his specialization in Arthroscopy surgery,” the ED said. The agency said Deshmukh does not need private medical hospitalisation and that he could get the treatment at JJ Hospital itself. Nikam argued that the senior NCP leader has a history of shoulder dislocation which worsened after his fall in jail.

“His (Deshmukh's) pain is not subsiding and he has been advised surgery by JJ Hospital. Deshmukh wishes to undergo this surgery at a hospital and doctors of his choice. He is a senior citizen, and hence during surgery, his heart condition will also have to be monitored,” Nikam said.

If Deshmukh is willing to bear the expenses of the surgery then the prosecuting agency (ED) cannot insist on him getting treated at a government hospital, he added. The ED launched a money laundering probe against Deshmukh, who was earlier the home minister in the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government, and others after the CBI booked him in a corruption case related to allegations of extortion made by former Mumbai police commissioner Param Bir Singh.

The ED claimed that Deshmukh had misused his official position and collected Rs 4.70 crore from various bars in Mumbai. The money was laundered to Nagpur-based Shri Sai Shikshan Sansthan, an educational trust controlled by the Deshmukh family, it alleged.