Two held in kidney sale racket in Akola

An alleged kidney selling racket has been busted in Akola with the arrest of two persons, police said on Sunday.

The accused, identified as Anand Jadhav and Devendra Sirsat, were on Saturday produced before a magisterial court, which placed them in police custody till December 7. The suspected racket came to light after a person complained that his kidney was removed and Sirsat gave him a lower amount than what he had been promised, police said. The complainant had reportedly agreed to sell his kidney to repay a debt of Rs 20,000 that he had taken from Jadhav.

While police were tight-lipped about the investigation, sources said that some businessmen from Akola and Aurangabad had purchased kidneys from the needy. Police have so far quizzed several doctors at various hospitals in Akola, Nagpur and Aurangabad even as reports emerged that the kidney sellers were ragpickers.

Sources said that the accused prepared bogus documents to mislead the medical committee set up under the Human Organ Transplant Act, 1994, which is mandated to verify organ transplant.