Nepal Police Bust Illegal Kidney Racket, Arrest Five Including Kingpin

PTI, Kathmandu, Aug 31, 2025 : Nepal Police have dismantled an illegal kidney trafficking network, arresting five individuals, including the ringleader, Shyam Krishna Bhandari. The police made the arrests on Saturday, with Bhandari, 38, and his accomplice, Sujan Bharati, detained at the Nepal-India border point in Birgunj. The Anti Human Trafficking Bureau of Nepal Police confirmed the arrests, noting that three others had been apprehended earlier in the investigation.

Bhandari, who had been operating the kidney racket for the past five years, had trafficked around 100 Nepali nationals from rural areas of Nepal to Delhi. There, their kidneys were forcibly removed and transplanted in private clinics. According to police, the arrested individuals lured victims with the promise of NRs. 6 lakh for donating a kidney, but the donors only received about NRs. 40,000 each.

The investigation was based on information from three previous arrests, who were involved in an illegal kidney transplantation operation between Kathmandu and Delhi. Using this intelligence, police were able to track down Bhandari and his associate, Bharati, who were operating the racket through a network involving both Nepal and India.

Authorities also uncovered that Bhandari was using an Indian Aadhaar Card to facilitate his illegal activities in Delhi.

In response to the bust, police are filing cases against those involved under Nepal's Anti-Human Trafficking Act. Convictions under this law can result in fines of up to NRs. 5 lakh and imprisonment for up to 10 years.