Allahabad HC quashes FIR against hosp over kidney removal allegation

Meerut: The Allahabad high court has quashed an FIR lodged against the owner of KMC Hospital and several doctors over the alleged illegal removal of a woman's kidney during surgery in 2017.
The FIR was filed by Kavita Devi, 43, a resident of Bugrasi town, against the hospital and associated diagnostic centres. She named Dr Sunil Gupta, the hospital's owner, along with Dr Ajay N Vats, Dr Satish Arora, Dr Seema Vashney, Dr Pratibha Gupta, and Dr Nikita Jaggi in her complaint.
Kavita claimed she underwent surgery at KMC Hospital in May 2017 for a health issue after Gupta advised an operation to repair internal organs, assuring her it would improve her condition. "I was discharged after the surgery with assurances that my kidneys were functioning properly," she had earlier told TOI.
However, her health deteriorated over the years. On May 25, 2022, during a consultation with another doctor, an ultrasound revealed that one of her kidneys was missing. "Until then, the doctors at KMC advised me not to seek other opinions, even though my health continued to decline. They even conducted ultrasounds, but the reports falsely showed both kidneys intact," she alleged.
Dr Sunil Gupta denied the charges, calling them "baseless". "This was sheer fraud, and there was not even an iota of truth in these accusations. I was subjected to extortion for the last six years. When the police didn't find merit in the case, the FIR was filed through the court. The high court rightly observed that there was no adequate evidence or medical basis to justify the FIR, and it has now been quashed," he told TOI.
The FIR had been registered in Jan 2025 on the directions of a Bulandshahr court under BNS sections 120B (criminal conspiracy), 326 (voluntarily causing grievous hurt by dangerous weapons or means), 506 (criminal intimidation), and Section 18 of the Transplantation of Human Organs and Tissues Act, 1994.
SK Dixit, counsel for the hospital, said, "It was an attempt to extort money. When that failed, the FIR was lodged. The court's decision has brought us major relief."