London: An Indian-origin cancer specialist has been removed from the United Kingdom’s medical register following a tribunal hearing after being sentenced in his absence to four years’ imprisonment over alleged coercive behaviour.

Dr Shamir Chandran, an oncologist with the National Health Service (NHS) in north-west England, has denied all allegations and has since left Britain.

He was convicted last November at Carlisle Crown Court on two counts of “controlling/coercive behaviour” and one count of “cruelty to a person under the age of 16” involving two unnamed females.

The General Medical Council (GMC) informed the tribunal that Chandran had been sentenced to four years’ imprisonment and was also made subject to a restraining order following the allegations.

The medic did not attend his criminal proceedings, with the Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service (MPTS) noting that he had “fled the country, resulting in an outstanding warrant for his arrest.”

Tribunal decision and regulatory findings

A Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service (MPTS) report concluded this week that his “fitness to practice is impaired by reason of a conviction for a criminal offence.”

“The tribunal took a proportionate approach, balancing the interests of Dr Chandran with the public interest,” reads the MPTS report.

“The tribunal considered that public confidence in the profession would be seriously undermined if a doctor with this type of criminal conviction was allowed to continue to practice. The tribunal also considered that erasure was necessary to have the appropriate deterrent effect, sending a clear message to the profession about what constitutes proper professional standards.

“The tribunal therefore determined to erase Dr Chandran's name from the register,” it states.

The tribunal added that in the absence of any evidence of insight or remediation, there was a “real risk of Dr Chandran repeating his past conduct.”

It also noted that if an appeal is made against the erasure, the order will remain in force until the appeal process is concluded.

Chandran’s statements to GMC

“I don't care anymore about the proceedings, as my career has already been destroyed,” reads an email communication from Chandran to the GMC, included in the MPTS report.

“I am utterly disgusted with the way I have been treated in the UK and I will never work in that country again. They treated me like a common criminal without giving any regard to what I had to say and the impact of what they were doing,” he said.

The doctor, whose MBBS qualification is recorded from the University of Calicut Academy of Medical Sciences, Pariyaram in Kerala, also informed the GMC that he no longer lives in the UK.

“Due to the GMC action, I had to resign (from) my job and leave the UK. I don't know how I can help with these proceedings now, as I am not working at present,” he is quoted as saying.

Chandran stated that he could not find the will to practice oncology anymore and was working with a friend in a “private business” while rebuilding his life.

The tribunal noted that he felt he had been victimised and had chosen not to engage with its hearing.