Doctor held in Indian organ scam

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BBC

A doctor alleged to be the mastermind of an organ-trading racket in India has been arrested in Nepal, according to Nepalese officials.

Amit Kumar was reportedly discovered in a jungle resort in southern Nepal.

India has asked Nepal to hand Mr Kumar over. He is expected to be questioned about a house in Delhi where illegal kidney transplants were carried out.

Officers say hundreds of poor labourers were lured from across northern India and bribed into selling their kidneys.

Banned

Kiran Gautam, the police chief in Chitwan district, about 160km (100 miles) south of Kathmandu, told Associated Press news agency Dr Kumar was being taken to the capital for questioning.

Nepal's minister of state for home affairs, Ram Kumar Chaudhary, told CNN that Dr Kumar was carrying $145,000 and a cheque for 900,000 euros ($1,305,000) when he was taken into custody.

According to Nepal's police, he could also face charges in that country relating to the foreign currency he was allegedly carrying.

Trade in human organs is banned in India but many continue to sell their kidneys to clients, including Westerners, waiting for transplants.

In January, police in Gurgaon, a suburb of Delhi, raided an illegal clinic after being tipped-off by a victim. Four people were arrested.

The donors were allegedly paid up to $2,500.

The clients are said to be wealthy Indians, and even some foreign visitors who were in urgent need of a kidney transplant and willing to pay large sums.

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He's been deported

Indian organ scam doctor deported (BBC)

A doctor accused of organising illegal organ transplants in India has been deported following his arrest in Nepal.

Amit Kumar was detained late on Thursday, accused of heading an illegal kidney transplant ring in Gurgaon, a wealthy suburb of New Delhi.

Police said they were investigating whether Mr Kumar was involved in illegal transplants in Nepal, and that he had been trying to flee to Canada.

Mr Kumar has denied the accusations of illegal practices.

"I have not committed any crime," he said at a news conference in Kathmandu on Friday.

India bans trade in live kidneys unless the organ is donated by a blood relative or a spouse, or if two families agree a swap.

But many continue to sell their kidneys to satisfy demand from rich clients, including Westerners, waiting for transplants.

In January, police raided an illegal clinic in Gurgaon after being tipped-off by a victim. Four people were arrested.

The donors were allegedly paid up to $2,500 (£1250).

Authorities in Nepal displayed bundles of foreign and Indian currency that they said were worth more than $200,000 and had been seized from Mr Kumar on his arrest.

[K. A. Pital]

Ugh... That's ugly. If there's something repugnant close to human slavery and human trade, that's organ trade. The poor are bribed to sell their body parts so that the rich may live, for a few thousand bucks? Fuck that. That shouldn't be happening. On some level that feels much worse than the usual injustice, crime, hunger, and poverty.