A special CBI court in Alipore on Tuesday remanded former RG Kar principal Sandip Ghosh and his three alleged associates in jail custody after the CBI said it needed time to verify evidence, electronic and otherwise, on alleged financial irregularities at the hospital.

The four, who were arrested by the CBI on September 2 in connection with the alleged irregularities, were remanded in jail custody till September 23.

The CBI lawyer told the court that the agency had sent for digital cloning the evidence it had collected during its probe into the alleged irregularities.

Once the cloned evidence comes, the lawyer submitted, the CBI will again seek
custody of the accused for questioning.

Officers said electronic gadgets, including mobile phones, laptops and hard discs, were seized from Ghosh and the other three accused — Afsar Ali, Suman Hazra and Biplab Singha.

Examination and digital cloning of the data stored in these devices is crucial because they would throw up clear clues about how a group carried out financial malpractices, the CBI lawyer said in the packed courtroom.

“We will seek fresh custody when the reports arrive,” the lawyer said.

Ali was an additional security guard of Ghosh when he was the principal of RG Kar. Singha supplied medicines and other items to RG Kar, while Hazra allegedly supplied medicines and medical equipment to the hospital at inflated rates.

Sources said several documents, including tender papers, quotations, award contract letters and other materials, were seized from Ghosh’s house and other
places, including his former office.

CBI sources said the documents suggest that the former principal was involved in irregularities under several heads, including disposal of bio-medical waste.

The CBI lawyer said the appeal for a fresh round of custody would be made under the new Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).

After hearing the submission, the judge said whether or not the plea for CBI
custody would be granted would depend on the circumstances during the time of
the appeal.

Ghosh’s lawyer did not press for bail. But the lawyers representing Singha and Ali did. Their plea was turned down.

When Ghosh was being taken out of the courtroom, several women advocates started shouting slogans against him. A few onlookers hurled slippers at him when he and the other accused were boarding a prison van.

CBI sources said their plea for virtual production of the four was turned down.