Kidney transplant racket: 2 donors, 3 recipients arrested

Sanjay Yadav

Gurugram, April 13

Failing to nab the absconding kingpin of a kidney transplant racket, the police today arrested two donors and three recipients in connection with the alleged commercial dealing in organs.

The accused were staying at a guest house in Gurugram after undergoing a kidney transplant. The accused were produced in a city court today and sent to judicial custody.

According to the police, the recipients have been identified as Kobir MD Ahasanul (31), Nurul Islam (56) and Mahmud Syed Akb (25) while the donors are Shamim Mehndi Hasan (34) and Hossain MD Azad (30), all natives of Bangladesh.

During investigation it was revealed that four of them had obtained a visa in the name of Fortis Hospital, Jaipur, while Shamim Hasan had obtained visa in the name of Ravindra Nath Tagore Hospital, Kolkata.

A senior investigating officer said the donors took Rs 2 lakh each for their kidney, which clearly meant that they were not emotionally attached to the recipient, and were not related to them by blood. They had supplied their kidney for monetary gains.

“The recipients made a payment of Rs 10 lakh to the racket kingpin, Mohammed Murtaza Ansari, for arranging the kidneys. The Transplantation of Human Organs and Tissues Act, 1994, prohibits commercial dealing in organs and permits donation only between relatives or with regulatory approval under exceptional circumstances. But despite these regulations, the accused offered and supplied the kidney for monetary gain only,” the officer added.

“We have arrested all five. They were sent to judicial custody after being produced in a city court today,” said Arjun Dhundhara, SHO of Sadar police station.

It was on April 4 that a team of the CM flying squad, district health department and the Gurugram police busted a gang involved in kidney transplant for money at two private hospitals in Jaipur.

After the transplant, the gang used to make the patient and the donor stay at a guest house in Gurugram. An FIR was registered at Sadar police station. The police is conducting raids to nab Ansari, a native of Jharkhand.

Sent to judicial custody

• Natives of Bangladesh, the accused have been sent to judicial custody
• They obtained visa in the name of Fortis Hospital, Jaipur, and Rabindranath Tagore Hospital, Kolkata
• The police are conducting raids to nab the kingpin, Mohammed Murtaza Ansari, a native of Jharkhand
• After the transplant, the gang used to put up the patient and donor at a guest house in Gurugram

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