The Supreme Court has brought an end to criminal proceedings initiated against Narayana Health and its officials over a disputed hospital bill involving ₹2,500, ruling that the matter reflected a billing lapse rather than a criminal act.
A Bench comprising Justice PS Narasimha and Justice Alok Aradhe held that the complaint revolved around issues of invoicing and access to medical documents, areas that could not automatically be converted into allegations of cheating or conspiracy.
The Court observed that the accusation of fraud had no real foundation, particularly because the hospital had already expressed willingness to refund the disputed amount once the discrepancy came to light.
According to the judgment, the billing irregularity appeared to stem from an oversight rather than any deliberate attempt to deceive.
The dispute originated after a woman named Bina Sen was admitted to Narayana Multi-specialty Hospital in Barasat, Kolkata, in February 2021 for treatment relating to a fractured femur. She underwent surgery and was discharged a few days later after her family paid more than ₹1.71 lakh toward treatment expenses.
Her son later alleged that the hospital bill included ₹2,500 for an HRCT scan that was never actually conducted. He further claimed that medical records were not handed over promptly and that hospital staff behaved improperly when questioned about the issue.
These allegations led to a criminal complaint invoking offences such as cheating, criminal breach of trust and conspiracy under the Indian Penal Code, along with provisions of the West Bengal Clinical Establishments Act, 2017.
A Magistrate had initially issued summons to the hospital, its Chairman and several staff members. Although the Calcutta High Court later intervened and sent the matter back for reconsideration on jurisdictional grounds, the Supreme Court concluded that the complaint itself lacked the ingredients necessary for criminal prosecution.
The Bench noted that criminal breach of trust could not be made out because there was no entrustment of money in any fiduciary sense. On the allegation of cheating, the Court stressed that the law requires proof of dishonest intention from the outset — something entirely absent in the complaint.
The judges also rejected the theory of criminal conspiracy, pointing out that there was no indication of any coordinated plan or prior agreement among the accused persons.
The ruling further underlined that the West Bengal Clinical Establishments Act already contains mechanisms to address disputes relating to billing, patient care, deficiencies in service and supply of records.
The Court cautioned against casually invoking criminal law without clearly demonstrating how a penal offence has actually been committed. Merely citing statutory provisions, it said, cannot justify prosecution in the absence of specific allegations establishing criminal intent.
With these findings, the Supreme Court allowed the appeals filed by Narayana Health and quashed the criminal complaint in its entirety.
