Guwahati Momo Seller and Gujarat Youth among those targeted in Kidney racket; Delhi Police arrest 10

Delhi: In connection with kidney transplantation racket, Delhi Police arrested ten people on Wednesday, including two physicians. According to police, the suspects also set up several Facebook pages where they would contact potential targets and ask them to come to Delhi. 

That's how Diwakar Sarkar (32), a momo seller in Guwahati, Assam, fell into the gang's clutches. According to his police statement, he suffered significant losses during the lockdown and was unable to reopen his momo shop. He is the sole breadwinner and is responsible for his wife, two children, and brother.

In May, he liked a Facebook page called 'Only Kidney Patient and Kidney Donor Wanted.' The accused contacted Diwakar and asked him to come to Delhi, with the men promising to pay for his flight. He arrived on May 14-15 and was forced to stay in a Daryaganj hotel. He was chosen as a donor after several tests, and the gang promised to pay him Rs 2-3 lakh. The police, who were conducting raids in Paschim Vihar to apprehend the suspects, arrived just in time and put an end to the operation.

For weeks, a police team led by SHO Shivani Singh and inspectors Bharat Lal and Rohit has been attempting to apprehend the suspects. The investigators discovered that the accused would primarily target homeless people between the ages of 21 and 33 who were sitting outside gurudwaras, temples, and hospitals. The victims were paid Rs 1-3 lakh, while the accused would receive Rs 20-25 lakh from the recipient, according to the police.

Raghu, from Gujarat's Kutch, was one of over 15 persons targeted by a group that ran a kidney transplantation racket spanning three states, largely the poor and homeless.

Raghu (21) left his home in Gujarat's Kutch in April to work in Delhi because his family was struggling financially as his father had lost his job as a result of the Covid-induced lockdown, and his mother had been forcibly discharged from a hospital because the family couldn't afford her diabetes treatment. He began staying outside a gurdwara in South Delhi in May after failing to locate a suitable employment and exhausting his savings.

“I was promised Rs 3 lakh. I met the man who received my kidney and asked for some more money as I needed to pay for my sister’s wedding expenses and my mother’s treatment. He gave me Rs 20,000 more. I felt bad that I had to sell my kidney, but I… needed the money,” said Raghu.

Sonu Rohilla (37), one of the arrested men, allegedly converted his two-story house in Gohana into a 'hospital' where he allegedly performed the procedures despite not being a qualified doctor, according to police. Rohilla, a Class X dropout, worked as an OT technician in Rohtak hospitals before meeting main accused Kuldeep Ray and establishing the hospital together.

Police said arrested doctor Sourabh Mittal (37) works at BL Kapoor Hospital. BLK hospital management issued a statement saying: “It has been brought to our attention that some personnel working at BLK-Max Hospital have been allegedly involved in illegal surgical work at a hospital in Gohana… We have no knowledge of this and are assisting authorities in their investigation.”