Last week, Delhi Police’s Crime Branch has taken a 50-year-old doctor from Delhi into custody for her alleged role in an illegal organ transplant racket operating between Bangladesh and India. As a result of this police action, the hospital has suspended the doctor. The Crime Branch had previously inquired the hospital for certain information as part of their investigation, and the hospital provided all the required details.
According to the police, the doctor, now suspended, was the only medical professional working with the gang. She is accused of performing about 15-16 illegal transplants at a private hospital between 2021 and 2023.
The racket involved convincing patients from Bangladesh to come to India for organ transplants, facilitated by a network of middlemen. In addition to this doctor, three Bangladeshi nationals were arrested last month.
Fake documents, supposedly from the Bangladesh High Commission in New Delhi, were allegedly created to falsely show a relationship between the donor and recipient, both from Bangladesh. This falsification was necessary to meet Indian legal requirements for organ transplants. The police have also seized these forged documents.
The arrested doctor was a senior consultant and kidney transplant surgeon. She had joined the hospital as a junior doctor nearly 15 years ago and worked on a fee-for-service basis, rather than being a regular employee of the hospital.
The hospital has highlighted its strong commitment to following all laws, rules, and regulations related to clinical and administrative procedures for all patients, whether they are from India or abroad. The hospital has performed over 25,000 kidney transplants while strictly following to all legal requirements. Government authorities have reviewed these processes and confirmed the hospital’s compliance record. The hospital assures that it will fully cooperate with the investigating authorities in this matter.