Kidney transplant racket: Five top doctors at Mumbai's Hiranandani Hospital arrested

MUMBAI: In a swift move on Tuesday evening, the Mumbai police arrested five top doctors of L H Hiranandani Hospital for alleged involvement in a racket related to kidney transplants. The same was was unearthed last month.

The arrested include the hospital CEO Sujit Chatterjee and medical director Anurag Naik along with three others who may be suspected according to a report of the state health department.

The arrests of the high profile doctors thicken the plot around the medical crime further with around 14 people taken into custody by the police so far. Reports suggest the police collected call data records of the doctors with the hospital transplant manager Nilesh Kamble, who is believed to be the kingpin in the crime.

The arrests were made under the Transplantation of Human Organs Act which clearly states that medical practitioners are not allowed to undertake transplantations of any human organs unless he has explained all possible effects, complications and hazards connected such process. If found guilty, parts of the punitive provisions include imprisonment of up to 10 years and a fine of up to Rs 1 crore for the offenders.

The sordid incident at the premium trust-run hospital based in the upscale Powai area of the city unfolded close after a scam detected earlier this year at the New Delhi-based Apollo Hospitals where an assistant of a nephrologist was allegedly caught perpetrating illegal kidney transplants.