Kamal Nath Govt Cracks Down on MP Physician After Protest, BJP Hits Back

Gwalior: The Kamal Nath-led Congress government recently cracked down on a senior physician in Gwalior who had served as Minister of State (MoS) during the previous Shivraj Singh-led BJP government.

BJP leaders have slammed the action calling it an act of vendetta. Dr AS Bhalla was recently in the news when the Gwalior physicians had riled against the administration’s ‘high-handedness’ after it razed down his Sahara hospital, which had allegedly expanded operations on government land through encroachments.

Dr Bhalla who reportedly shares proximity with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was made a member of the Madhya Pradesh Minority Commission in 2017.

The building had been owned by a local resident Brijmohan Parihar. The physician had been in a legal battle with the owner for the last few years.

Bhalla had got a stay on the anti-encroachment drive against his hospital despite which the administration started razing the building on December 6.

After the administration approached the HC and informed the court that Bhalla had encroached on government land and violated the building’s norms, the court vacated the stay on Monday.

Following this, the administration immediately razed a major part of the hospital. Besides, the administration has already taken action against Bhalla’s wife Manjeet Bhalla over violation of building norms. Manjeet Bhalla was also been named in another case of land fraud complaint and a case was registered with the Maharajganj police station in Gwalior recently.

Sources also claimed that Bhalla drew ire of a senior Congress leader based at New Delhi as he was engaged in a legal feud with the owner of a noted school group and owned a school in Gwalior.

The group allegedly wanted to take over the school in Gwalior, an idea that was rejected by Bhalla. However, on charges of embezzlement in school funds, the group owner and Bhalla entered into a legal feud and also lodged police complaint against each other.

Bhalla also alleged that the group owner has used the proximity of a senior Congress leader to hurt him.

Sources however believe that Bhalla spearheading the physicians’ protest against the administration latched onto an opportunity to crack down.