A 50-year-old Indian doctor, Dr. Vijaya Kumari, has been arrested and suspended from Indraprastha Apollo Hospital in Delhi for her alleged role in an illegal organ transplant ring operating between Bangladesh and India, reported The Indian Express.

Dr. Kumari is accused of working with a network of middlemen and associates to lure patients from Bangladesh to major hospitals in the Delhi area for organ transplants.

Records indicate she performed approximately 15-16 transplants at a private hospital in Noida between 2021 and 2023. In addition to Dr. Kumari, three Bangladeshi nationals were also arrested in connection with the racket last month.

Forged documents claiming a relationship between Bangladeshi organ donors and recipients were allegedly created to circumvent Indian law.

These falsified documents, now in the possession of authorities, were purportedly issued by the Bangladesh High Commission in New Delhi. Dr. Kumari, a senior consultant and kidney transplant surgeon, has been affiliated with Apollo Hospital for 15 years, but worked on a fee-for-service basis, not as a salaried employee.

She also served as a visiting consultant at Yatharth Hospital, where she performed transplants on patients she personally brought in.

The hospital's additional medical superintendent confirmed that no hospital patients were assigned to Dr. Kumari, and she had only conducted one surgery there in the last three months.

Following the police action, Indraprastha Apollo Hospitals (IAH) suspended the doctor involved. IAH clarified that it had cooperated fully with the Crime Branch's investigation and emphasized that the case pertains to procedures conducted at a different hospital, unrelated to any activities at IAH.

An organ trafficking gang

The investigation uncovered an organ trafficking ring led by Rasel, a 29-year-old Bangladeshi national, along with his associates Mohammed Sumon Miyan, Ifti (also from Bangladesh), and Ratish Pal from Tripura.

The group allegedly lured Bangladeshi donors to Delhi, offering them 4-5 lakh rupees for their kidneys, while charging recipients 25-30 lakh rupees.All members of the group, except Ifti, have been apprehended.

According to sources, law enforcement began investigating this case three months ago after a similar kidney racket was uncovered in Rajasthan.

All suspects arrested in connection with this case are first-time offenders, and it's alleged that the doctor involved received 2-3 lakh rupees for each transplant.

In this particular instance, donors and recipients utilized a medical tourism company called Al Shifa to coordinate their stay, medical treatment, and tests. A victim's statement, which is admissible in court, has been recorded under Section 164 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC).

Authorities have also seized the victim's medical records from Yatharth Hospital, revealing forged documents from the Bangladesh High Commission that were used to complete the medical file associated with the victim's transplant.

Law enforcement is currently investigating a suspected organized crime syndicate involved in the illegal organ trade. As part of this investigation, Dr. Kumari's assistant, Vikram, has been arrested.

Records indicate that Rasel, hailing from Kushtia district in Bangladesh, had rented a flat in Jasola Village, which housed five to six organ donors.

All pre-transplant tests were reportedly conducted at this location, and recipients would also meet donors there. Rasel identified his associates as Miyan (28) and Mohammad Rokon (26), both from Dhaka, who were present at the flat during questioning.

During the arrests, a bag containing nine passports, two diaries, and a register was recovered from Rasel's room. The passports belonged to organ donors and recipients, and the diary allegedly detailed financial transactions between them.

Additionally, another bag seized from Mohd Rokon contained 20 stamps with various impressions and two stamp ink pads (blue and red), which were allegedly used to create false documents. Rokon was subsequently arrested.

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