Kanpur: Probe into Kanpur’s illicit kidney trade has exposed a sprawling network across Lucknow, Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, and Nepal, with seven to eight hospitals under the lens in Kanpur alone.The arrested OT technicians, Kuldeep Singh Raghav and Rajesh Kumar, spilled the beans during interrogation, revealing a city nursing home’s involvement in the racket. However, they couldn’t pinpoint the exact location due to darkness, except that it is near a railway crossing. They also mentioned that a kidney transplant took place there recently.DCP West SM Qasim Abidi said the duo reported that two teams of doctors arrived late Sunday to perform twin transplants, but left after completing only one. They provided details about two donors from Jharkhand and Nepal, leading police teams to search for them, Abidi said.The DCP said eight individuals were arrested recently in connection with the illegal kidney trade in private hospitals. During the investigation, other names surfaced and police conducted raids to arrest them.Abidi revealed that they’re closing in on Dr Rohit from Indirapuram, Ghaziabad, and expect to make an arrest soon. A raid was also conducted at Dr Ali’s residence based on leads. Initially, it appears Dr Ali worked as a technician, not a doctor, but this needs confirmation. Abidi said clear facts will emerge post-arrest and questioning. Meanwhile, they have identified around seven to eight hospitals involved in the racket.Investigators said two kidney transplants were scheduled at Ahuja Hospital in Keshavpuram that night, with Dr Ali performing the surgery and Dr Rohit administering anaesthesia. However, they became aware of police presence and fled after completing one transplant.Police Commissioner Raghubir Lal said significant information was obtained in the investigation into the kidney buying-selling and illegal transplants in city hospitals.Police said Kuldeep from Pilkhuwa, Hapur, was an OT technician at Shanti Gopal Hospital in Ghaziabad since 2012, earning a salary of Rs 42,000. Rajesh from Ghaziabad was an OT manager at Sarvodaya Hospital in Noida and earned Rs 70,000.About a year and a half ago, Rajesh and Kuldeep met 35-year-old Dr Rohit at a seminar at a hospital in Vaishali, Ghaziabad. They began conversing and subsequently became involved in the kidney racket. Dr Rohit, who ran the kidney trade racket, used to provide Rs 40,000-40,000 and flight tickets for each transplant to these people. On the day of the transplant, eight people arrived at Ahuja Hospital in Keshavpuram, of whom three came from Ghaziabad and five from Lucknow. Teams have been deployed to search for the accused, who came from Lucknow. Police said the arrested accused were preparing to flee abroad.Ahuja Hospital in Keshavpuram, Rawatpur, was the scene of an illegal kidney transplant on Sunday night, where a Muzaffarnagar resident received a kidney from an MBBS student from Begusarai, Bihar. Dr Rohit from Lucknow led the transplant team, which included seven others. The police received a tip-off about the illegal transplant, leading to a major investigationA member associated with the racket tipped off the police about this illegal kidney transplant the same night. After the transplant on Monday, police arrested Ahuja Hospital operator Dr Surjit Singh Ahuja, his wife and IMA Kanpur vice-president Dr Preeti Ahuja, and broker Shivam Agrawal, Ram Prakash, Rajesh, and Narendra Singh.Police are searching for Dr Rohit, Dr Afzal from Meerut, Dr Anurag alias Amit, and Dr Vaibhav in connection with the illegal kidney transplant racket. The gang allegedly used a Telegram group called “Kidney Donor” to facilitate their business. DCP West SM Kasim Abidi revealed that a team of eight people, including Dr Rohit, arrived in Kanpur by flight and reached Ahuja Hospital in two cars to perform the transplant.
