Uttar Pradesh: Hassam Ahmad poses as a resident doctor at KGMU Lucknow, targets Hindu female students; arrested by Lucknow Police

Lucknow Police on Tuesday (21st April) arrested a Muslim man named Hassam Ahmad, accused of duping patients and their attendants by posing as a resident doctor at King George’s Medical University (KGMU) in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh. He portrayed himself as a representative of a fictitious organisation, ‘Cardio Seva Sansthan Trust’, to dupe patients and their attendants. According to police, Ahmad targeted Hindu female students and was linked to a religious conversion racket.

26-year-old Hassam Ahmad established contact with medical students from two other colleges as well, and specifically targeted Hindu women. Once, he gave fake letters to women in the name of taking them to a conference at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in Delhi. He reportedly used to take female students to camps in Muslim-majority areas in the name of the “Cardio Seva Sansthan Trust”.

Ahmad was arrested following an inquiry after a formal complaint was submitted against him. KGMU spokesperson, Dr KK Singh, said that a probe was initiated under the Vice-Chancellor after inputs were received about a suspected impersonator moving across the campus. “Our team had been monitoring unusual activity and apprehended him on Tuesday. He was involved in such activities for the past three years,” Singh said. Singh added that Ahmad used to lure students by claiming that he could arrange interactions with doctors from the US at AIIMS.

Deputy commissioner of police (West), Kamlesh Dixit, said that Ahmad had been cheating patients and their attendants in the name of ‘Cardio Seva Sansthan Trust’. He had been collecting money from them on the pretext of offering them some treatment. He was caught by some MBBS students, who handed him over to the police. An FIR was registered against him at Chowk police station for cheating and forgery.

According to police, Ahmad forged a notice in the name of a KGMU professor about a fake conference at AIIMS, Delhi, to mislead students. “Mobile data suggests he may have been trying to lure students to Delhi. This angle is under probe,” DCP Dixit said. The police tracked his movement before finally nabbing him on Tuesday. Police are verifying his claims regarding having links with multiple departments and staff within the university.

Police said that letters bearing fabricated signatures and a fake KGMU letterhead were recovered from Ahmad, who was always seen wearing a white coat. He revealed during questioning that he had studied up to the 12th standard and ran a social service organisation, conducting medical camps. He also named some individuals linked to private medical institutions during interrogation, who are being examined by the police. The police are also verifying his connection, scrutinising financial transactions and authenticating the recovered documents.