Kavre, May 30

Kavre was once known as a kidney bank as racketeering in kidney was rampant in the district.

Recent news about illegal kidney transplant in the district has compelled people to think that kidney smugglers have become active once again.

Kidney smugglers tricked Kumar Giri, 29, of Girigaun in Banepa Municipality, Kavre, and took one of his kidneys 35 days ago and transplanted the vital organ into Tharka Bahadur Basnet, 51, of Sallaghari, Bhaktapur.

Bhaktapur police arrested Basnet on May 28 on the basis of the case filed by Kumar’s brother Prahlad after the kidney of his brother was taken out and transplanted in Basnet.

Police investigation shows that Basnet had projected Kumar as his son with a fake relationship certificate with support from kidney smugglers. The prevailing law of the land has provisioned that kidney can be taken out from a person and transplanted into another person within a family.

When Basnet’s son Ashish was looking for a kidney donor for his father, Dilluram Giri and Lalchandra Giri of Girigaun in Banepa Municiplaity-came to his rescue as they tempted the mentally disturbed Kumar of their village and transplanted his kidney to Basnet’s benefit. “A manhunt to nab the Giri duo is on,” said Bhaktapur police.

Earlier, there were many cases of people selling their vital organs in Kavre. A mother of two kids from then Methinkot VDC, Kavre, sold one of her kidneys for Rs three lakh to pay off a debt her husband had taken for foreign employment around three years ago.

Six years ago, a 34-year-old man from the then Fulbari VDC had sold his kidney in India. Three youths too had followed suit.

Kidney racketeering had ceased after police arrested 10 smugglers five years ago. Organisations researching the kidney racket had ranked Kavre as the number one district for kidney smuggling.

Statistics show that kidney smuggling started at then Hokse and Jyamdi VDCs in Kavre some 24 years ago.

Seven members of a Thakuri family from Hokse VDC sold their kidneys. They had left the village seven years ago. Most people, who sell their vital organs are from Hokse and Jyamdi VDCs.

According to Forum for Protection of People’s Rights Nepal, more than 300 people have sold their kidneys in Kavre so far. More women have sold their kidneys than men.

PPR Nepal Director Satish Sharma said kidney smuggling had taken place in ten districts and Kavre ranked number one. “Due to awareness programme, kidney racket had ceased to exist. But, now it seems that kidney smugglers have started raising their heads again,” Sharma said.

Kavre police chief SP Rabiraj Khadka said no case related to the kidney racket had been filed for the last few years. “We shall launch a search operation if such a case is filed,” SP Khadka said.

Human Trafficking and Transportation (Control) Act 2007 has provisioned 10 years’ jail sentence and a fine ranging from Rs two to five lakh for human organ trafficking.