Kidney Transplant Racket: State submits action taken report to Madras HC

Madurai: After being asked to submit an action taken report in the kidney transplant racket case, the Director of Medical and Rural Health Services (DMS) submitted the status cum action report on Thursday before the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court, stating that the government is taking strict steps to stop illegal organ transplants in the State.

During the hearing, the government in its report stated that action has been taken against the two hospitals involved in the case - Dhanalakshmi Srinivasan Medical College Hospital in Perambalur and Cethar Hospitals in Trichy, and steps have been initiated to streamline and improve the implementation of the Transplantation of Human Organs and Tissues Act, 1994, in the State.

Regarding the two brokers who lured the poor patients with money for transplantation, the report recommended registration of an FIR against them. The director of medical education and research has initiated disciplinary action against the officials and staff of the district authorisation committee in Madurai in connection with the case.

Also read- HC seeks report from Tamil Nadu Govt on kidney transplant racket

Medical Dialogues reported that the division bench comprising Justice S M Subramaniam and Justice G Arul Murugan, in the previous hearing, directed the Tamil Nadu government to submit a detailed report on the action taken against those involved in the kidney trafficking racket.

The order was passed while hearing a public interest litigation filed by SN Sathiswaran of Paramakudi taluk, Ramanathapuram district, who stated that the government did not take action in curbing organ trafficking and punishing those responsible.

The petitioner stated that the racket came to light when videos and testimonies surfaced online featuring workers from Pallipalayam and nearby areas in Namakkal, particularly from power loom and dyeing mill communities, claiming they were lured into selling kidneys for 5 lakh to 10 lakh. Several victims claimed they received much less than promised, even though the recipient paid 10 lakh to the broker. People belonging to the economically weaker sections were abused, and their kidneys were removed.

In pursuance, the director of medical and rural health services, Dr D K Chitra, filed a status report before the court on Thursday, as reported by TOI. In the report, she stated that following media reports about kidney transplants in Namakkal district, an inquiry was conducted by the Tamil Nadu Health Systems Project. Based on the inquiry, licences granted to Dhanalakshmi Srinivasan Medical College and Hospital at Perambalur and Cethar Hospital in Trichy to conduct kidney transplants were suspended.

Medical Dialogues a month ago reported that a suspected kidney transplant racket came to light in Namakkal, where a broker allegedly targeted poor textile workers, lured them into selling their kidneys for money at two private hospitals - Dhanalakshmi Srinivasan Medical College Hospital in Perambalur and Cethar Hospitals in Trichy.

The donors were secretly taken to private hospitals, admitted as patients, and kept for a week to undergo the transplant in exchange for amounts ranging from Rs 5 to 10 lakh. After the procedure, they were handed over the money, which helped them to repay their debts. The brokers specifically targeted vulnerable and poor individuals who were in urgent need of money. Investigators suspected that the middlemen supplied poor donors to recipients under the guise of false familial relationships.

Following this, the Directorate of Medical and Rural Health Services permanently revoked both the hospital's transplant licences. Both private hospitals were found submitting forged documents to government accreditation committees to obtain transplant approvals, in violation of the Transplantation of Human Organs Act, 1994.

The investigation led by S Vineeth, project director, Tamil Nadu Urban Health Care Project, into the incident discovered that unrelated living donors were procured through brokers for monetary gain. Two brokers identified as Anandan and Stanley Mohan are key intermediaries in the illegal operations.

Along with brokers, several hospital staff members, including transplant coordinators, were allegedly involved in the racket. They were accused of preparing fraudulent documents, falsely presenting donors as family relatives, and approving their surgeries. The inquiry report recommended disciplinary action against the officials responsible for these illegal activities.

However, the petitioner in the previous hearing stated that no action had been taken against the accused despite widespread reports of irregularities at the two hospitals.

"During the inquiry and review of the documents, it was noticed that the required certificates were fabricated to create an impression that the donor and the recipient were family friends. It was revealed that donors were arranged by brokers for financial reasons. Action has been recommended against two brokers, Anandan and Stanley Mohan," stated the report.

The report mentioned that the government has proposed restructuring the district-level authorisation committees and setting up a new State-level committee. It also suggested improving the Standard Operating Procedures to make the functioning of these committees more effective. Further, it recommended taking disciplinary action against officials and staff who approved transplants without proper verification of documents. The report also stressed to create awareness among the public that the selling of body parts in the name of organ donation is illegal and a punishable offence.

A bench has posted the matter for further hearing on August 25.

Also read- Tamil Nadu cancels transplant licenses of 2 private hospitals over illegal organ trade