The doctor was seen waiting anxiously for the verdict and seemed shattered when the court passed the sentence. “He did not expect such a long imprisonment,” one of his friends told mediapersons.

Sat Pal Singla was granted bail till April 3 after his lawyer moved an application. The bail was granted on the condition that the accused would surrender before the court if he fails to get relief from a higher court. Dr Dhaliwal was sent to jail directly.

The CBI registered a case against the surgeon in May 2003, accusing him of cheating, forgery and conspiring with two chemists in the purchase of artificial heart valves at very high rates and then sharing the profits between themselves. The second chemist had turned approver in the case during the trial.

A diary seized by the CBI from one of the chemists reportedly contained details on the actual price of the valves, the inflated amount charged from patients and the division of profit. The chemist had paid the doctor a total of Rs 15.02 lakh, CBI sources said.

Dr Dhaliwal had conducted 324 operations between 1994 and 2001 and was suspended after the incident.

The CBI further established that the surgeon’s modus operandi was to send an official requisition for imported heart valves for patients. In reality, the doctor implanted a cheaper brand of implants while charging for the expensive valves.

In certain instances, the surgeon billed two heart valves but implanted only one or charged for one valve without even conducting an operation, the CBI said.

It was also found the doctor had made certain additions and alterations in various documents of the hospital.

Silence after the verdict
Faculty members and officials of the PGI chose to remain mum on the conviction of Professor R S Dhaliwal, former head of the Department of the Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgery, by the CBI on Tuesday. Dr Dhaliwal was suspended from the institute nearly two years ago after the scam had surfaced. His wife, Professor L K Dhaliwal, currently heads the Gynaecology department at the hospital.