Mumbai: Getting under people's skin is part of Dr Vijay Sharma's job. But CCTV cameras recently rescued the cosmetic surgeon from the fury of a woman who had gone under his knife. Model Mahee Shaikh was arrested for trying to extort money from cosmetic surgeon Vijay Sharma by threatening to slap molestation case as she was not happy with her facial surgery.
"I have been victimised by many of my clients, who have charged me with molestation, due to which I had to install surveillance cameras in my clinic. With the help of the footage I have lodged a case against one of my patients," said Dr Sharma.
The surgeon registered a case against the model, who appeared in Madhur Bhandarkar's 'Dil Toh Bachcha Hai Ji', accusing her of trying to extort money from him and issuing threats to brand him a molester.
On the face of it
In his complaint, Sharma has said that Mahee underwent facial surgery in July 2011 at his clinic in Khar and returned to him on February 15. Dissatisfied with the results of the procedure, she allegedly threatened the surgeon of slapping a false case of molestation and demanded a refund of the fees.
Her diatribes were recorded by the CCTV cameras and Sharma gave the footage to police. Based on the complaint and the evidence, Khar police arrested Mahee on Wednesday. She was, however, granted bail the next day.
"I had told the lady that I would rectify the problems for free, but Mahee refused and demanded a refund. She also threatened me with false allegations," said Sharma.
Cheque please!
"On February 22, Mahee made a call on my mobile phone, giving me an ultimatum to cough up the amount or face the consequences," added Sharma.
"For the procedure, she was supposed to pay me Rs 60,000. She gave me Rs 10,000 in cash for which I issued her a receipt. The rest of the amount was paid by cheque. The first one bounced, so I asked her to issue a second cheque, which passed. I do not owe her any money," the doctor said.
When contacted, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Zone IX) Pratap Dighavkar said, "Based on the CCTV footage and other evidence like mobile phone recording provided by Sharma, Mahee was arrested for extortion."
Not so clean himself
Dr Vijay Sharma, who had been arrested earlier by the Khar police in two separate cases of molestation, was arrested again by them on October 13 last year for allegedly molesting a small-time model. Sharma was later granted bail.
The surgeon was produced before a Bandra court, which initially sent him to judicial custody. Later, he was granted bail on the condition that he should visit the police station regularly for two weeks. The Khar police, while seeking his remand, told the court that he was a habitual offender and hence should not be granted bail. Sharma was acquitted in an earlier case as the victim turned hostile.
Mahee Shaikh gives a completely different version of events. She said, "Sharma claimed that I would require four sessions to eradicate the scars on my face and took Rs 50,000 in cash when I was shooting in Goa, apart from three post-dated cheques. After the first session I had told the doctor that I was not happy, but he convinced me that results would take time. The entire surgery would have cost Rs 2 lakh but I did not go back for the remaining sessions."
"Later, I realised that he encashed the cheques even before the sessions were over, leaving me in a spot of bother. I went to the clinic to demand my money but the doctor asked for a week's time. I left for Goa where I got a call from the police that I needed to be present at the police station as there was a complaint against me," she said.
"I was shocked and immediately came to Mumbai. My mobile and SIM card are in possession of the police, which will act as evidence against Sharma. The surgeon had no intentions of refunding my money as he had failed to perform a successful surgery. I will file a court case against Sharma," Sheikh said.
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