Expressing concern over complaints of most hospitals in Tamil Nadu being reluctant to perform organ transplantation if the donor was not a relative of the recipient, the Madras High Court has said that such refusal would be “plainly illegal” since the Transplantation of Human Organs and Tissues Act, 1994, permits even non-relatives to donate organs.
“The hospitals in Tamil Nadu appear to have pinned themselves to their committed reluctance to entertain a non-relative for an organ donor when the Act does not insist that the donor should be a relative. This attitude is worrisome as it holds the potential to undermine the objectives behind the Act and defeat its purpose,”Justice N. Seshasayee wrote.
He went on to state: “This court has reasons to believe that the apprehensions of the hospitals here to entertain organ transplantation between non-relatives is more due to inadequate awareness on the law on the topic. This court trusts that the aforesaid discussion (in the judgment) may help the physicians and hospitals in gaining in confidence in dealing with the issue.”
