A notice to two hospitals and West Bengal’s Health Department questions how the former chief minister’s injury records were made public without her consent.
Lawyers for former West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee served a legal notice on October 5 to SSKM Hospital, the Bangur Institute of Neurosciences and the State Health Department over the alleged disclosure of her 2021 medical records without consent.
The dispute intensified after current Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari made a medical report public at a press conference on October 3. He said it showed no fracture or dislocation and alleged Banerjee had faked her injury. The injury dates to March 10, 2021, during an election campaign in Nandigram. Banerjee said miscreants had slammed her car door on her while she stood on its footboard, injuring her left leg and waist.
Banerjee’s lawyer Arka Nag emailed the notice to the SSKM director and medical superintendent, the head of neurology at Bangur, and the department’s principal secretary. A State Health Department source said the notice asks how the records reached Adhikari and were then made public. It argues that lawful access by the government or an investigative agency would not in itself authorise public disclosure.
Adhikari responded by warning Banerjee against pursuing the matter and said further documents, including X-ray and MRI reports, could be released if needed. He did not say whether the records had come from Banerjee’s office or residence.
Adhikari said the state Criminal Investigation Department was already investigating and that the government could launch a fresh probe after an upcoming Assembly by-election. The notice seeks an explanation. It does not itself establish how the records were obtained or whether any law was broken.