A Mumbai Court has granted bail to the five doctors of Mumbai's Hiranandani hospital and the Chief Executive Officer and medical director today in the Hiranandani kidney racket case. The doctors were arrested on Tuesday night after the police found their involvement in the kidney racket.
What is the case
In July, Mumbai police busted the racket when it received a tip-off about a kidney transplant case at the hospital, where the donor was not the wife of the recipient (which she had claimed to be). The police raided the hospital premises after a complaint was made by social activist Mahesh Tunna, leading to arrests to 14 people, including middlemen, last month. The racket involved giving away kidneys at a price in the name of transplants. The case came to light in July following a complaint.
The doctors were held at the Powai police station. They were booked under section 12 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and the Transplantations of the Human Organs Act (TOHA). The police have also invoked Section 19 of TOHA, which provides for imprisonment of up to 10 years and a fine of up to Rs. 1 crore for the offenders.
The Maharashtra government while taking a serious notice of the matter has formulated new standard operating procedures (SOPs) for kidney transplant cases in the state hospitals. The hospitals have been asked to constitute a special cell to keep track of transplant cases.
With respect to providing authentic details of the donors and recipients of the kidney, the state government has mulled the use of the Aadhar card of the donor to avoid any discrepancies.
The hospitals have also been asked to ensure health check-ups of the donors.
Before undertaking any kidney transplant operation, the hospital authorities have been asked to conduct a counselling session with both the sides and show them a sample video of procedures.
