Kingpin's brother challenges police probe

AHMEDABAD: Gujarat high court on Monday summoned the officer who had handled the Pandoli kidney racket case at Anand police station, after one Jeevan Raut, challenged the legality of the probe. Jeevan is not an accused in the case though his brother, Dr Santosh alias Amit Raut is the main accused.Amit is currently on the run.
The petitioner submitted that police lack the authority to probe the case as provisions of Transplant of Human Organs & Tissues Act (THOA) have been invoked, along with applicable sections of the Indian Penal Code.
Raut's advocate, Chetan Pandya, said in 2009 the Supreme Court had made it clear that police officials are not empowered to probe offences registered under THOA.
Pandya said Section 13 of THOA mandates that the Centre and state government must appoint an appropriate authority under THOA to probe offences registered under the law. However, the administration did not appoint any official under THOA to probe the Pandoli kidney racket case.
After preliminary hearing, Justice Sonia Gokani ordered that the investigating officer in this case should remain present before the court on September 15 with all investigation papers. Raut has approached the high court seeking quashing of the investigation after, allegedly, police started pressurizing him in interest of the probe. He has also urged the court to restrain cops from harassing him, because his name does not figure either in the FIR or in the chargesheet.
In March this year, Anand police busted the alleged kidney racket in Pandoli village. This happened after a 27-year-old resident of the village, Amir Malik, filed a complaint that his kidney had been extracted at a Delhi hospital without his knowledge or consent.
Amit Raut had been termed a “quack“ by a Panchkula court in 2013 and sentenced to seven years in jail.
He was granted bail last year. After being released on bail, a year later, Raut reportedly shifted his base to Gurgaon, from where he has been alleged to have lured poor villagers of Pandoli to extract their kidneys.
After his arrest in the kidney racket scam, Amit Raut escaped from police who were escorting him back to the state in Swarna Jayanti Rajdhani Express. Police have not been able to trace him till date.