Legal notice to 3 SSKM, Bangur doctors over Mamata Banerjee medical report leak
Synopsis
Key Takeaways
Former West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's counsel Arka Kumar Nag on Monday, 5 October 2026, served a legal notice to three senior doctors at two state-run hospitals in South Kolkata — S.S.K.M. Medical College & Hospital and Bangur Institute of Neurosciences — over the alleged unauthorised disclosure of the former Chief Minister's medical records, in what her legal team has described as a violation of patient-doctor confidentiality.
Who Received the Notice
The two-page notice, sent via email, was addressed to three medical officials: Dr. Manimoy Bandyopadhyay, Director of S.S.K.M. Medical College & Hospital; Dr. Pijush Kumar Roy, Medical Superintendent & Vice-Principal of the Bangur Institute of Neurosciences; and Dr. Atanu Biswas, Head of the Department of Neurology at the Bangur Institute.
In the notice, Nag stated that 'incomplete and biased details' of Banerjee's medical condition had been published based on the records made public. He questioned whether his client's explicit permission had been sought before the report was released, and demanded that her 'medical confidentiality' not be violated going forward and that 'misleading information' not be circulated.
The Political Trigger: Adhikari's Fracture Allegation
The legal notice was served against the backdrop of an explosive allegation made by the current West Bengal Chief Minister, Suvendu Adhikari, on Saturday. Adhikari publicly accused his predecessor of fabricating a leg fracture during the 2021 West Bengal Assembly election campaign at Nandigram Assembly constituency in East Midnapore district.
Speaking to media persons, Adhikari reportedly cited a radiodiagnosis report from the Bangur Institute of Neurosciences dated 11 March 2021, which, he claimed, showed no sign of fracture in Banerjee's limb during that period. He also said a separate probe into the matter would be initiated after the results of bypolls for Nandigram and Rejinagar Assembly constituencies — scheduled on Tuesday — are declared on 9 October.
Notably, in 2021, Mamata Banerjee had campaigned for the Nandigram seat in a wheelchair with a plaster on her leg, reportedly following an injury during the campaign trail. She subsequently lost the Nandigram seat to Adhikari by a margin of fewer than 2,000 votes. She was later elected in a bypoll from Bhabanipur Assembly constituency in South Kolkata, retaining the Chief Minister's chair for a third consecutive term.
Trinamool Congress Challenges Report's Authenticity
Trinamool Congress (TMC) legislator from Beleghata Assembly constituency in North Kolkata, Kunal Ghosh, challenged the authenticity of the radiodiagnosis report cited by Adhikari, indirectly suggesting it may have been tampered with. Ghosh argued that since the current West Bengal dispensation is run by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), questions over the report's authenticity were inevitable.
Ghosh also made a social media post asserting that it was not standard medical practice for doctors or institutions to disclose anyone's personal medical records. Two days after that post, Banerjee's counsel formally followed up with the legal notice to the three named doctors.
Key Demand: Accountability and Due Process
The legal notice specifically questioned whether any of Banerjee's medical documents had been shared with the current Chief Minister Adhikari, and if so, whether proper legal procedures had been followed before doing so. Nag warned that if the disclosure occurred without following due legal process or without his client's consent, appropriate action must be initiated against the officials concerned.
With bypolls for Nandigram and Rejinagar underway and results due on 9 October, the legal and political battle over Banerjee's 2021 injury is set to intensify in the days ahead.