The Enforcement Directorate's (ED) Guwahati Zonal Office has provisionally attached immovable and movable properties worth approximately Rs 29.77 lakh in connection with a large-scale fraud under the Ayushman Bharat – Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY) scheme in Assam.
The action was taken under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002.
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The case centres on Noble Hospital and Research Centre in Algapur, Hailakandi, owned by Dr Nozmul Islam Choudhury.
According to the ED, the hospital — which was empanelled under the AB-PMJAY scheme in Assam through the Atal Amrit Abhiyan Society (AAAS) — filed 920 fake reimbursement claims worth approximately Rs 77.83 lakh between February 22, 2019, and November 5, 2022, without providing any actual medical treatment to beneficiaries.
Investigators found that the hospital lured AB-PMJAY cardholders, photographed them lying on hospital beds to falsely depict hospitalisation, and uploaded fabricated treatment records onto the Transaction Management System (TMS) portal to generate bogus reimbursement claims.
The Atal Amrit Abhiyan Society disbursed approximately Rs 69.42 lakh — after TDS deductions — directly into the hospital's Canara Bank account at the Hailakandi branch.
ED investigation traced how the proceeds of crime were subsequently laundered through ATM cash withdrawals, transfers to the accused's personal Axis Bank account, UPI transactions to various individuals, and transfers to related persons including the accused's brother.
The fraudulent claims first came to light following a beneficiary audit conducted by the Atal Amrit Abhiyan Society. The audit found that most claims filed by the hospital were false — patients listed as indoor admissions had only visited as outpatients and were never actually hospitalised.
An FIR was subsequently registered at Algapur Police Station, Hailakandi, under Sections 420 (cheating) and 468 (forgery for the purpose of cheating) of the Indian Penal Code, 1860, following which a charge sheet was filed against Dr Choudhury.
The ED said further investigation is ongoing.