Mumbai homeopathic doctor arrested for performing ‘surgeries’ at Chennai hotel

CHENNAI: Riding on her social media popularity, a Mumbai-based homeopathic doctor and her assistant were performing unauthorised surgical procedures from out of a makeshift ‘clinic’ at a hotel in Chennai, only to be arrested by the Teynampet police on Wednesday.Poonam Sharma, 54, who boasts of an "ear hole repair," was intercepted during a raid at the hotel, where she set up a makeshift clinic to perform ear lobe repair surgeries.Sharma, a homeopathic doctor who studied at Nagpur Homeopathy College in Maharashtra and runs a homeopathy clinic at Nariman Point in Mumbai, presented herself on online platforms as a specialist who safely pierces ears and repairs ear lobes. She posted more than 800 videos and claimed to have treated over 5,000 people in more than 15 cities across the country. The treatment method is called auroplasty and is used for people unable to wear earrings.Kaviyarasan, president of the Indian Association of Dermatologists, Venereologists and Leprologists, filed a complaint with the office of the Director of Medical and Rural Welfare Services, stating that Sharma was performing surgical procedures without proper permission in Tamil Nadu, without sufficient medical education and using surgical equipment meant for allopathic doctors.The complaint cited a Tamil Nadu govt order issued on Feb 13, stating that only qualified skin and cosmetic specialists can perform such surgeries with proper facilities. Based on the complaint, a team led by Dr Meenakshi Sundari, Joint Director of Medical and Rural Welfare Services, conducted a raid at the city hotel on Kodambakkam High Road.The team detained Sharma and her receptionist, Shilpa, 44, of Kandappa Mudhali Street, Elephant Gate, and handed them over to Teynampet police at 2pm. Teynampet police registered a case under Sections 125, 272 and 318(4), read with 15(3) of the Medical Council Act.Investigation revealed that Sharma came to Chennai three times last year and stayed at the hotel in Nungambakkam to provide ‘treatment’. She made appointments through mobile phones with people who received treatment earlier. Police also found that people seeking treatment through WhatsApp were charged a booking fee of Rs 2,000. Both the accused were produced before a magistrate court and remanded in judicial custody.