Kidney racket: Organ transplant licence of Dera Bassi hospital revoked
Gaurav Kanthwal
Mohali, April 4
The police were scrutinising details of 34 recipients and donors registered at Indus International Hospital, Dera Bassi.
Recently, the police had busted kidney racket allegedly being run from the past three years at the hospital. It has come to the fore that donors and recipients were arranged from the same state.
Sources said a donor “victim” was rescued hours before going under the knife and an elaborate tout-customer nexus was at play with Rs 16 to Rs 25 lakh charged for an organ.
It has come to the fore that a tout, Raj Narayan, who is in judicial custody, had first approached the hospital to sell his kidney. He met hospital coordinator, Abhishek, who is also in judicial custody, and became a facilitator.
“When the patients in need of a transplant approached the hospital, coordinator Abhishek shared the details with Narayan, who then contacted the patients, and made the offer to the latter,” said a source.
“Naryan was just a logistics manager, kingpin of the gang is on the run,” sources said.
Dera Bassi ASP Dr Darpan Ahluwalia said, “It is a bit early to speak at this point. The SIT is probing the matter.”
The victim on whose complaint an FIR was registered has claimed that the day he went under the knife, another transplant surgery was also performed.
Though several transplants were under the scanner, the hospital management denied any wrongdoing.
Surinder Pal Singh Bedi, clinical director, Indus Hospital, said, “The hospital’s organ tansplant licence has been revoked by the Health Department. All the documents sought by the department have been submitted by the hospital.”
The hospital authorities said all the procedures were followed by a six-member internal board, including independent members Gurdip Chahal, a social worker; and a lawyer, who retired from the Himachal Pradesh Lokpal.
The hospital said they didn’t know how DNA samples of two unrelated persons were matched to establish family relationships between the donor and recipient.
Despite repeated attempts, Health Minister Dr Balbir Singh and Dr Avnish Kumar, Director Research & Medical Education, did not answer the calls. Mohali Civil Surgeon Dr Adarshpal Kaur said she was not aware of any action by the Health Department. “It is a criminal case. The police were investigating the matter,” she said.
Indus Healthcare, owned by Dr Sant Prakash Singh, has three super-speciality hospitals in Punjab, two overseas divisions in Africa (Botswana) and a diagnostic centre, raised from a nursing home.
In news for wrong reasons
- 0n July 31, 2020, Colonel Amarjit Chandhok (retired) alleged that body of his wife Jasjot Kaur was bitten by rats in the mortuary of Indus Hospital, Dera Bassi
- He alleged medical negligence on part of the hospital in the treatment of his wife which led to her death
- Later, the administration took the body in its posession and kept it at the Civil Hospital’s mortuary
Transplant authorisation board
- SPS Bedi: Chairperson
- Dr VPS Sandhu: Member
- Dr Parminder Gill: Member
- JC Sharma: Member
- Gurdip Chahal: Member
- Dr Sarabjeet: Member
