The Delhi High Court has asked the central government to decide a 62-year-old liver cirrhosis patient’s appeal against the decision of a hospital denying permission to one of her close acquaintances to donate her liver for transplantation within a week.
Justice Kailash Gambhir asked the Directorate General of Health Services to decide on Agra-based woman patient Urmila Anand’s plea against the Indraprastha Apollo Hospital’s decision in the light of an earlier ruling of the Delhi High Court that recently had said that one can donate one’s organ out of his or her love for the recipient.
A single judge bench of the high court last month, referring to the provisions of the Transplantation of Human Organs Act, had held that the Act does not prohibit organ donation by a person, who is not a relative.
‘What is prohibited is the commercial transaction in the giving and taking of organs and tissues. However, donations offered out of love and affection even amongst those who are not near relatives, is permitted,’ the high court had said.
Anand’s counsel told the court that his client has been undergoing treatment at Apollo Hospital and was in dire need of liver transplantation, but the DGHS had given her no deadline to decide on her plea against the hospital’s decision.
Anand, in her petition, had claimed that one Gulab Devi, associated with her family for last 30 years, has decided to donate her liver for transplantation out of love and affection as the blood group of none of the three children of the patient, two daughters and a son, has matched.
The counsel said Gulab Devi gave her consent to donate part of her liver after her blood group matched with the patient.
Referring to the high court’s last month’s ruling on organ donation, Urmila’s counsel also argued that the love and affection between the donor and recipient, who are known to each other for past 30 years, could be a just ground for donation of organ.
The lawyer argued that no objection certificates were issued by the Organ Transplantation Committee of UP and District Authorisation Committee of Agra besides the MP and Agra too had favoured organ donation by Devi and had issued letters supporting her act.
Ignoring their bonding for such long years and NOCs from various authorities, the hospital has rejected the request for donation on the ground that there was financial disparity between Anand and Devi, the lawyer submitted.
The hospital’s authorisation committee, which examines cases of organ donation by distant relatives, has rejected their request on the ground that the donation involved commercial transaction.
Justice Kailash Gambhir asked the Directorate General of Health Services to decide on Agra-based woman patient Urmila Anand’s plea against the Indraprastha Apollo Hospital’s decision in the light of an earlier ruling of the Delhi High Court that recently had said that one can donate one’s organ out of his or her love for the recipient.
A single judge bench of the high court last month, referring to the provisions of the Transplantation of Human Organs Act, had held that the Act does not prohibit organ donation by a person, who is not a relative.
‘What is prohibited is the commercial transaction in the giving and taking of organs and tissues. However, donations offered out of love and affection even amongst those who are not near relatives, is permitted,’ the high court had said.
Anand’s counsel told the court that his client has been undergoing treatment at Apollo Hospital and was in dire need of liver transplantation, but the DGHS had given her no deadline to decide on her plea against the hospital’s decision.
Anand, in her petition, had claimed that one Gulab Devi, associated with her family for last 30 years, has decided to donate her liver for transplantation out of love and affection as the blood group of none of the three children of the patient, two daughters and a son, has matched.
The counsel said Gulab Devi gave her consent to donate part of her liver after her blood group matched with the patient.
Referring to the high court’s last month’s ruling on organ donation, Urmila’s counsel also argued that the love and affection between the donor and recipient, who are known to each other for past 30 years, could be a just ground for donation of organ.
The lawyer argued that no objection certificates were issued by the Organ Transplantation Committee of UP and District Authorisation Committee of Agra besides the MP and Agra too had favoured organ donation by Devi and had issued letters supporting her act.
Ignoring their bonding for such long years and NOCs from various authorities, the hospital has rejected the request for donation on the ground that there was financial disparity between Anand and Devi, the lawyer submitted.
The hospital’s authorisation committee, which examines cases of organ donation by distant relatives, has rejected their request on the ground that the donation involved commercial transaction.