Rachakonda Police Busts Illegal Kidney Transplantation Racket

In a major breakthrough, the Rachakonda Police, Telangana, have busted an illegal kidney transplantation racket being operated by the management of Alakananda Hospital in Hyderabad. The operation led to the arrest of nine accused, including the hospital's Managing Director, Dr. Guntupally Sumanth, and several doctors and mediators involved in the racket.

Acting on credible information, a team of police officials from the Saroornagar Police and Special Operations Team (SOT), LB Nagar Zone, along with the District Medical & Health Officer (DMHO), Ranga Reddy district, conducted a raid on the hospital on January 21, 2025. The team found four individuals at the hospital, including two donors, a recipient, and the Managing Director, Dr. Guntupally Sumanth.

Initial investigations revealed that the hospital was functioning without proper authorization to conduct kidney transplantation surgeries. Further inquiry revealed that the hospital was being run by Dr. Siddamshetty Avinash, who had completed his MBBS in China and pursued a Diploma in Surgery in Pune, Maharashtra. Dr. Avinash had taken over Janani Hospital in 2022 but was unable to manage it due to financial difficulties. He was approached by a person named Laxman from Vizag, who proposed conducting illegal kidney transplantations at the hospital.

Dr. Avinash agreed to the proposal and facilitated the surgeries, receiving ₹2.5 lakh for each surgery. The main surgeon, Dr. Raja Shekhar Perumal from Tamil Nadu, and Dr. Sohib from Jammu & Kashmir were also involved in the surgeries. The operating theater assistants, Shankar from Tamil Nadu, Pradeep, and Suraj from Karnataka, were also involved in the racket.

The racket involved collecting ₹55-60 lakh from each recipient, out of which ₹5 lakh was given to the donor, ₹2.5 lakh to Dr. Avinash, ₹10 lakh to the lead surgeon, around ₹30,000 to the five operating theater assistants, and the remainder was taken by the organizers and mediators. The accused A-2: Dr. Guntupally Sumanth (Managing Director of Alakananda Hospital) and A-8: Narasani Gopi (Receptionist and Assistant to Dr. Avinash) were arrested on 23.01.2025 and were produced before the Hon'ble court and remanded to judicial custody.

On 25.01.2025, the following accused were arrested:

A-1: Siddamshetty Avinash

A-6: Ponnuswamy Pradeep

A-7: Ramavath Ravi

A-11: Sapavath Ravinder

A-12: Sapavath Harish

A-13: Podila Sai

A-14: Suraj Mishra

A total of seven accused are being produced before the Hon'ble court. The police also seized a TATA Punch Car, a surgical kit, and ₹5 lakh in cash during the raid.

The Commissioner of Police, Rachakonda, and the DCP, LB Nagar Zone, commended the efforts of the police team, led by Inspector of Police, Shri V. Saidi Reddy, for their good work in busting the illegal racket.

The police have registered a case against the accused under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and the Transplantation of Human Organs and Tissues Act, 1994. The investigation is ongoing, and further arrests are expected.

The Rachakonda Police Commissionerate expressed gratitude to the public for their cooperation and support in bringing the racket to an end.