Mumbai vaccine scam: 4 arrested for organizing fake COVID-19 vaccination camp at housing society

Mumbai Police have arrested four persons, who were involved in organizing the COVID-19 vaccination camp at the plush housing society.

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New Delhi: Four persons have been arrested for allegedly duping a plush housing society in suburban Kandivali by organizing a COVID-19 vaccination camp fraudulently in the name of a private hospital, an official release by the Mumbai police read. 

“Police have arrested four persons, who were involved in organising the COVID-19 vaccination camp at the housing society. Besides them, one more person, who had procured vaccines for the camp has been detained at a railway station in Madhya Pradesh and a team of Mumbai police bringing him to the city,” Additional Commissioner of Police (North) Dilip Sawant was quoted as saying by PTI. 

 Among the arrested, one is a male organizer of the vaccination camp, and other persons are those who issued fake vaccination certificates after obtaining personal data of the inoculated members. 

The incident came to light after Hiranandani Heritage Residents Welfare Association (HHRWA) registered a complaint with the police. The RWA mentioned that a COVID-19 vaccination camp was arranged by the residential complex on May 30. However, later they discovered that the Co-WIN portal did not have any record of the people who participated in the drive and the certificates received after getting the jab were in the name of different hospitals. The residents were issued vaccination certificates in the name of Nanavati Hospital, Lifeline Hospital and NESCO Covid Camp, among others.

Around 390 members were administered the COVID jab at the camp at Rs 1,260 per person. The members also expressed concern that the vaccine administered could be spurious.

As per Sawant, the members of the racket had organized vaccination camps at nine other places. He added that the investigation is still underway. 

Meanwhile, it was also found that Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) had not given permission to organise such a camp, as well as no medical officer, was present during the drive, the official told the news agency. 

(With agency input)