Many viewers were taken by surprise when a subplot of ‘Andhadhun‘ took on the subject of organ donation. And the reason why it was such a shocker is because the doctors and his accomplices were so casual about the whole matter.
That’s why many viewers couldn’t believe that illegal organ harvesting can take place so easily in our country. Well, in a way they’re correct because it isn’t that easy, as proven in a stenographer’s case who arrived at a hospital to sell his kidneys.
According to Bangalore Mirror, the latest case of illegal organ harvesting came to light when a 52-year-old M.B. Somashekar walked into Columbia Asia Hospital to donate his kidney. An officer investigating the case said,
“Somashekar is said to have shown Dhal WhatsApp messages and subsequent conversations on various dates where ‘Dr. David’ allegedly had been in contact with him about the sale of his kidney. However, he could not remember the name of the website or its URL.”
So, here’s how it all went down. Somashekar, a stenographer, apparently saw an ad on the internet where Dr. Arun Wesley David (HoD, Renal Transplant Surgery) had posted an open invite to sell kidneys in exchange of money. Considering how Somashekar had some financial problems, he was determined to sell his kidney and hence approached Aprajita Dhal, the transplant coordinator of the hospital.
Somashekar alleged that Dr. David gave an open offer of Rs. 1.6 crores to sell one of his kidneys. He also told that he was told to come with his Aadhar card and other documents for proof. However, Dr. David has vehemently denied these allegations and filed a complaint of impersonation. An officer said that,
“The doctor in his complaint has stated that he is not the owner of the said mobile number from which the WhatsApp conversation has been made with the stenographer and is unaware of any dubious websites.”
The officer further added that,
“The man is impersonating Dr. David and he could have also used his pictures as the display picture on the WhatsApp mobile. The doctor has stated that there is an intent to cheat people by impersonating him by preparing documents fraudulently and publishing them as genuine on electronic media.”
While the police is yet to determine the truth behind this illegal organ harvesting market, Columbia Asia Hospital has released a statement to clarify the whole issue. A spokesperson said that,
As of now the cyber police has registered a case to find out who’s apparently impersonating Dr. David and what’s the source of this ad that’s asking for kidneys in exchange for money.