Raj Kumar Makkad (Adv P & H High Court Chandigarh) 12 January 2012

Hc acquits siddaraju in 1994 kidney racket

BANGALORE: The Karnataka High Court on Tuesday acquitted four doctors in the 1994 Bangalore kidney racket that which had hit national headlines.

Justice V Jagannathan allowed a batch of criminal review petitions filed by the four accused doctors, who had challenged the charges framed by the 4th Additional City Civil and Sessions Court, Bangalore, against them for allegedly stealing kidneys from patients, and for conspiracy.

Dr KS Siddaraju was then head of nephrology at the Victoria Hospital, while Dr S A Ahmed, Dr Dilip Patil and Dr Dilip C Dhanpal were consultants. The complaint said they conducted kidney transplants at the Yellamma Dasappa Hospital. Two others, accused of being touts, were also discharged.

The court observed there was no evidence to proceed against them, and there were records to show that 75 tests were conducted on the kidney donors and recipients before transplantation. There were also sufficient documents to prove that donors got demand drafts from the recipients.

The Commercial Street police had charged these doctors under IPC's Sections 379 (theft), 120 (conspiracy), 326 (causing grievous hurt), 327 (causing hurt to constrain illegal act), and 406 (breach of trust), among other charges. However, the lower court dropped most of these charges and by its October 19, 2005 order, had framed charges against the doctors only under Sections 379 and 120.

SOURCE: The Times of India

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Kumar Doab (FIN) 12 January 2012

We are really not aware that whether these doctors were involved in unethical practices or not!

There are a few facts about human organ transplant which needs to be looked into.

Many of the experts who know the medical aspects in and out have mentioned that the concerned laws need to be amended. It is not possible to clear the backlog from brain dead patients, and the fact is that in majority of the cases donors do not come forward even from family. Although families are willing to pay for the donor and operation. That is why those who can afford have taken their patients to Pakistan, Singapore,.......... however plenty of the patients suffer because they can afford it. Our social security balnket is so bad that although it is right of every citizen state is not providing/ can't provide insurance support to one and all.

Stem cell research has made lots of advancement and one day they may grow kidney in a petty dish, but can it be made affordable for one and all.

It is said out of hundered surgeons one becomes transplant surgeon and out of 100 transplant surgeons one is a gifted surgeon.

Dr. Pradeep Kumar ( fake degree) was caught and probably is being tried.It is said he was asked to come to OT and show his hands and expert medical board was surprised at his skill. It is said he was trained by another (in) famous transplant surgeon Dr. P.........S....een, who was also tried. Some of the members of the board whispered if Pradeep has to be lodged in jail why can't he be asked to perform surgeries in jail hospital on convicts as the concern was such a talent should not go waste. In jail the inmates are expected to perform the job they know (or some job) and they are paid some allowance also. Those who know Dr. S....een say that he is a gifted transplant surgeon and his skill is of the level only a few can attain.Both of them were caught since the middlemen did not care for post operative care and many of the donors were dead.

Probably lessons are learnt from published cases and process is made so airtight that no traces are left and culprits can not be penalised.

This is high time that the law should be amended to save lives and healthcare should be made affordable.

If the corrupt can be booked and wealth amassed can be pooled to a corpus no indian citizen shall be poor and no one shall suffer.