Insurance scam and a lifetime of disability

Saji Thomas / TNN / Jul 7, 2006, 00:25 IST

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Bhura Prajapati was poor, now he's physically handicapped too. He was unfortunate enough to fall into the hands of scamsters.

Insurance scam and a lifetime of disability

JABALPUR: Bhura Prajapati was poor, now he's physically handicapped too. He was unfortunate enough to fall into the hands of scamsters who amputated one of his legs and showed him as an accident victim to file a false insurance claim.
They then pocketed the compensation money and what fell in 32-year-old Prajapati's share was a lifetime of disability.This was not a one-off case, realised the police as they dug into several such complaints, but a part of an organised third-party insurance racket that has claimed nine victims so far.
The perpetrators are seemingly above-board lawyers, doctors, insurance agents and policemen, keeping an eye open for gullible victims to make a quick buck.
Monthlong investigations revealed the modus operandi of the racketeers. According to the police, poor people admitted to different government hospitals were lured by lawyers and offered better free medical treatment in the Suvidha Hospital and some cash.

"Once the victims got admitted, conniving doctors complicated their ailment by injecting medicine and amputated their limbs, mostly hands or legs," said a police officer.
Then, false accident cases were registered, showing these people as victims, and third party insurance was claimed on their behalf from court.
"Mujhe kya maloom tha ki woh log ilaj ke bahane mere taang kaat dega (How was I to know they would chop off my leg on the pretext of treatment)?" said Prajapathi, who said he had been promised Rs 10 lakh if he gave a statement that he was an accident victim.

Narrating how he fell into the racketeers' trap, Prajapathi said, "Some time back I was admitted to the government Victoria hospital, as I was suffering from recurring leg pain.
I was approached by some people, who turned out to be devils posing as saviours." He said he was lured into shifting to Suvidha Hospital with the promise of better treatment and kept in a separate room.
"Even my family was not allowed to meet me," he added. One day, he was told that he was inflicted by gangrene and his leg would have to be amputated.
"I was told that if I cooperated, I could claim accident insurance up to 10 lakh, of which their cut would be Rs 3 lakh," he said. However, once formalities were through and a false case with Prajapati's name lodged, the racketeers disappeared, pocketing the entire claim.
The police claim to have traced cases of Sarman Ben, 40, and Gyani Burman, 37, besides nine others, that are almost similar to that of Prajapati's. Each of the victims have lost a limb, and got nothing in return.
SP D Shreenivasa Rao told TOI that though sufficient evidence had been collected about the racket, the police were seeking permission from a court to re-investigate the nine cases of fraudulent third-party accident claims before taking action against the perpetrators.
He said the cases had been brought to the notice of police through an anonymous complaint. According to the SP, of the nine cases, seven were still pending in the court for final order, while the accused succeeded in recovering claims to the tune of Rs 3 lakh each from two cases.

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