Mumbai: Fraudulent vaccination drive, Police lodges complaint, 4 held

The Mumbai Police has lodged an FIR when the residents of a housing society in Mumbai’s Kandivali area had claimed that they were the victims of a vaccination scam

Four people were arrested under the sections of cheating and fraud. The police also detained a person, Karim, in Satna of Madhya Pradesh with the connection in the case. Karim reportedly ran away when the scam came in light. He has been suspected of supplying vaccines. The validity of the vaccines that were given out to people are also under investigation of the police. The report from BMC is awaited.

The Matchbox pictures filed a complaint for the alleged fraudulent vaccination drive of their staff. A written complaint had been filed ag Mumbai’s Versova Police Station. Both the complaints are under investigation of the police, at Kandivali and at Versova.

On May 29, over 150 employees and family member of Matchbox Pictures were given their first shot of Covishield vaccination, incidentally via SP events, the same group who conducted the vaccination drive at Kandivali’s Hiranandani Estate Society. It was organised by Rajesh Pandey who was a former hospital employee and his associate, Sanjay Gupta.

A senior official from Versova Police station said that Gupta was associated with SP events and he brought more clients for the vaccination drive. Employee of Matchbox Pictures on the condition of remaining anonymous told them that they weren’t given any vaccination certificates after receiving the jabs. The company used to say that due to a backlog, their certificates would be issued a week later, everyone was worried as no one experienced the post-vaccination symptoms.

On May 30, as a part of the vaccination camp at Hiranandani Heritage Society, over 390 people received the Covishield vaccines inside the premises itself. At  Rs.1260 per dose, the over 390 people who received vaccinations, the society paid over Rs.5 lakhs to the facilitator.

The facilitator, Rajesh Pandey, claimed to the members of the society committee that he was a representative of Kokilaben Ambani Hospital. Sanjay Gupta coordinated the vaccination drive, Mahindra Singh collected money in cash from the society members. A resident of the society said that they did not receive any message after getting the vaccination and neither they were allowed to take photos or selfies while getting vaccinated.