THANE: Seven persons, including a doctor, have been booked for allegedly duping a woman of over ₹31 lakh on the pretext of arranging a kidney donor for her ailing husband. Police suspect the accused could be linked to a larger human organ trafficking racket.
Vitthalwadi police said Dipali Chavan, 32, a resident of Chinchpada in Kalyan east, had earlier donated one of her kidneys to save her husband after both his kidneys failed. However, complications following the transplant resulted in a serious infection, leading to a further deterioration in his health.
Their family doctor, Dr Gaurav Dharma Nair, allegedly told the couple he could arrange another kidney donor and facilitate a transplant procedure. He introduced them to a group of individuals, who were: Mosmi Biswas, Jaydev Biswas, Abhishek Manna, Sumanta Pandey, Iqbal Ahmed Siddiqui and Mohammed Abbas. They were projected as facilitators in the process.
According to the complaint, the accused collectively extracted ₹31,67,860 from Chavan between July 2025 and March 2026. The payments were made in instalments, including cash and online transfers, within nine months. Despite receiving the payment, the accused failed to arrange a donor or initiate any legitimate medical procedure.
Upon realising she had been deceived, Chavan approached the police on Monday. Police registered an FIR against all seven accused under relevant sections pertaining to cheating, criminal conspiracy and organised criminal activity.
According to the police, one of the accused is based in Kolkata, hinting at a possible inter-state network.
Sachin Gore, deputy commissioner of police, Zone 5, said, “After ascertaining the specific roles and involvement of each accused, appropriate legal action will be taken, including arrests.”
