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Raj Bothra

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Rajendra Bothra
BornIndia
OccupationSurgeon
Known forInterventional pain management
SpousePammi Bothra
ChildrenSonia Bothra
AwardsPadma Shri

Rajendra Bothra is a surgeon, interventional pain management expert, activist, and survivor of one of America's biggest false arrest and imprisonment scandals. He grew up with a loving family in a rural town in India with a population of 25,000 and no electricity or high school. He earned his first medical degree from Sardar Patel Medical College before completing a year-long junior house surgeon residency at Bombay Hospital in Mumbai and attending the University of Edinburgh and the Royal College of Surgeons (FRCS) in London. His U.S. surgical journey began in 1972 at Sinai Hospital in Detroit and led him to Holy Cross Hospital, where he acted as Department of Surgery Chair, Medical Staff President, and member of the Board of Trustees. During this time, he built a single-owner private practice that became the nation's largest interventional pain management system (The Pain Center, USA, and Interventional Pain Center). He is a former fellow of the American Board of Interventional Pain Physicians (ABIPP).

File:Raj at Capital.jpg
Raj Bothra at the Capital

Over the years, Dr. Bothra has supported activist causes in India and the U.S. He co-founded the Nargis Dutt Memorial Foundation with his mentor Sunil Dutt, an actor turned politician. From 1980 to 2000, he volunteered a month each year in India, working on various socio-economic issues. In the 1980s, he produced a Hindi film, Mehndi. By the invitation of India's Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, he started a national campaign against drug abuse, which was later extended to include HIV/AIDS and smoking. He worked with Bibek Debroy, CEO of Rajiv Gandhi Foundation, and Ekta Kapoor of Balaji Telefilms to produce educational videos distributed to schools across India. He’s worked with important public figures, including various Indian prime ministers, U.S. presidents, Mother Teresa, and Pope John Paul II. Indian President K.R. Narayanan awarded him the high civilian honor of Padma Shri, and he’s received numerous awards in India and the U.S. for his public service. His political activism has allowed him to work closely over the past few decades with the Republican Party, even earning him an appointment by George H. W. Bush to be the co-chairman of the Asian-American Coalition for the 1988 United States presidential election.

Arrest, Imprisonment, and Acquittal

On December 6, 2018, Bothra and five other physicians at Interventional Pain Center (IPC) and The Pain Center USA (TPC) were indicted for healthcare fraud and all physicians other than Dr. Bothra were released on bond pending trial. Dr. Bothra was taken into federal custody due to his finances and connections in India, for which the government considered him a flight risk. He remained in custody 1301 days until a jury found him and the other physicians on trail innocent of all fifty-four charges. During his incarceration that lasted three years, six months, and twenty-four days, all eight of his motions for bail were denied The charges brought against TPC/IPC and the physicians included allegations that the practice was fueling the nation's opioid epidemic, cheating Medicare, and performing unnecessary procedures. Despite the less than one percent odds against winning against the government in trial, he refused a plea deal, as did three of the other physicians being charged. They took their chances at trial, where the truth could be exposed. on June 29, 2022., Dr. Bothra and the his three co-defendants were acquitted on all criminal charges. After nearly forty-three months behind bars, the physician and activist for just causes received the closest thing he would get to justice and was released from federal custody. Despite his acquittal, there were several lawsuits pending the conclusion of the criminal trial. On August 24, 2023, on his wife's request for closure, Dr. Bothra settled two separate civil suits, agreeing to pay $6.8 million in settlements reported by the Department of Justice.

Family Life and Rebuilding His Life

Thirty years ago, his work with one of Mother Teresa’s orphanages led him to adopt a six-month-old baby girl, Sonia, which he considers to be his highest life achievement. Since his acquittal in 2022, he continues to reclaim his freedom and rebuild the beautiful life he shares with his wife Pammi and daughter Sonia and her husband Zee. He has written a memoir that chronicles his life leading up to his false arrest and imprisonment that ultimately led to his acquittal on June 29, 2022. Official publication and cinematic details are forthcoming about this book, Acquitted: The Truth Behind the Federal False Arrest and Imprisonment Scandal, U.S.A. vs. Dr. Raj Bothra. Dr. Bothra hopes his story provokes important conversations about the flawed judicial system in the U.S. while it illuminates the resilient power of the human soul and becomes a lighthouse and beacon of hope to those who are navigating their own dark storms.

See also

References

  1. "Dr. Raj Bothra awarded Padma Shri". Embassy of India, Washington D C. 29 January 1999. Retrieved October 31, 2015.
  2. "Padma Awards" (PDF). Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India. 2015. Retrieved July 21, 2015.
  3. "United States of America v. Bothra et al: OPINION and ORDER Denying 340 Motion for Revocation of Detention Order; Denying 369 Motion to File an Addendum as to Rajendra Bothra (1). Signed by District Judge Stephen J. Murphy, III. (DPar)". www.docketbird.com. Retrieved 2022-06-18.
  4. "US: Padmashri Doctor accused of Healthcare fraud, gets bail on record Rs 50 crore bond". Medical Dialogues. 2019. Retrieved January 17, 2019.
  5. "Padma Shri Dr Raj Bothra acquitted of all charges in US trial". 29 June 2022.
  6. NAMAS (2022-07-28). "Justice Served". NAMAS. Retrieved 2024-07-03.
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