Was former RG Kar principal Sandip Ghosh jailed in Hong Kong for sexually abusing a nurse? 2017 report goes viral

Kolkata doctor rape case: Former RG Kar Hospital director Sandip Ghosh's name cropped up in a 2017 case involving sexual harassment of a nursing student in Hong Kong. Sandip Ghosh is being investigated by the CBI for alleged financial irregularities. A report has surfaced accusing 45-year-old Indian government doctor Sandip Ghosh of “patting the male nurse on the left buttock and attempting to touch his private parts”.

According to Hong Kong newspapers My News report, A certain Sandip Ghosh had indecently assaulted the nursing student and asked him: “Do you like this?”

Mint could not independently verify whether Sandip Ghosh, mentioned in the Hong Kong case, is the former director of RG Kar Hospital.

Sandip Ghosh in Hong Kong

According to the report, Sandip Ghosh, an Indian government doctor, was participating in an internship program in Hong Kong when the incident occurred. On April 8, 2017, a nursing student at Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Hong Kong's Kowloon accused orthopedic surgeon Sandip Ghosh of sexual assault.

Ghosh claimed it was a misunderstanding and that he accidentally touched a nurse's hip as she was demonstrating how to treat a dislocated shoulder by pulling on his arm.

Ghosh denied the nurse's allegations and said he had said, “Do it this way.”

Sandip Ghosh pleaded not guilty to one count of sexual assault in the Kowloon City Court. Defense attorney David Boyton argued the charge was a “convenient excuse” for the nurse's delay and suggested a misunderstanding due to Ghosh's accent.

The nurse admitted to being late frequently but denied any misinterpretation.

Sandip Ghosh stated that he had sought help for a recurrent shoulder dislocation that morning and claimed that he had no ill intentions. Dr. Wilson Li, a defense witness, confirmed that Ghosh had a history of shoulder dislocations, which was supported by his MRI scan and Indian medical records.

Hong Kong court acquits Sandip Ghosh

Asia Times reported that the Kowloon City Magistrates' Court acquitted Sandip Ghosh. “The judge accepted Ghosh's explanation and his recurrent shoulder dislocation, as well as the misunderstanding that may have arisen because the victim misinterpreted the defendant's English accent,” the article said.

The South China Morning Post noted that the case led to a reduction in Ghosh's hospital stay. “Due to the lawsuit, the hospital stopped his posting and so he actually only worked there for a few days,” the newspaper reported.

Doctor rape case in Kolkata: Sandip Ghosh

Sandip Ghosh, the former director of the West Bengal government-run RG Kar Hospital, has come under criticism after a 31-year-old trainee doctor was raped and murdered at the medical facility on August 9.

The victim's parents claimed that the hospital administration had initially ruled out their daughter's death as a “suicide”. The CBI has been investigating whether Sandip Ghosh staged the manipulation.

Former Deputy Director of RG Kar Hospital, Dr. Akhtar Ali, filed several complaints about financial irregularities in the institution during Sandip Ghosh's tenure as director.

There are allegations that under Sandip Ghosh's leadership, organs from unidentified bodies brought to hospital for autopsy were often sold on the black market at high prices.