Suspicion over a prescription revealed yesterday that a physiotherapist was impersonating a doctor at Modern Diagnostic Centre in the city's Fakirapool.

The revelation came as a police constable of Rajarbagh Police Lines went to Debesh Sarkar, who was claiming to be an orthopaedic doctor, at the centre seeking treatment for arthritis.

Finding no effect from the drugs prescribed by Debesh, the constable consulted another physician who raised the alarm, stating that the prescribed drugs were not meant for arthritic patients.

This is when the constable informed Magistrate Anwar Pasha of Rapid Action Battalion (Rab) who raided the diagnostic centre yesterday and discovered Debesh's true identity.

Debesh was awarded a two-year jail sentence and fined Tk 3 lakh while the centre Manager Mujibul Haq was fined Tk 1 lakh for aiding Debesh.

Hailing from Raojan in Chittagong, the 35-year-old Debesh joined the centre last year and has a chamber in Malibagh.

Debesh claimed that he passed from the department of physiotherapy and health science of Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences of India in 2007.

Arman Hossain, a deputy director of Bangladesh Medical and Dental Council, said none can claim to be a doctor unless the person has an MBBS or BDS (Bachelor of Dental Surgery) degree.

Magistrate Anwar said he found at least 25 fake doctors in some private clinics and diagnostic centres in the capital in the last three years. “There are even incidents where some fake doctors had only passed SSC orHSC.”