The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on 18 June 2026 carried out searches across Kerala in connection with an alleged organ trafficking racket that investigators believe generated substantial illegal proceeds through forged documents, middlemen and unlawful kidney transplant arrangements, as reported in The Hindu.
Simultaneous searches were conducted at nine locations spread across Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, Alappuzha, Kottayam, Ernakulam and Kasaragod districts. Among the institutions searched were some of Kerala’s largest private hospitals, including Aster Medcity in Cheranalloor, VPS Lakeshore Hospital in Maradu, Medical Trust Hospital in Kochi, Rajagiri Hospital in Aluva, Caritas Hospital in Kottayam and Gokulam Hospital in Thiruvananthapuram.
The raids form part of the ED’s money laundering investigation into an organ trafficking syndicate allegedly headed by Mohammed Najeeb Kallatra, a 53-year-old native of Kasaragod who was arrested earlier this year in Ghaziabad following a month-long manhunt.
Alleged Multi-Crore Organ Trafficking Network Under Scanner
According to investigators, Najeeb and his associates allegedly exploited financially distressed individuals and facilitated illegal kidney transplants through forged documentation and fabricated relationships between donors and recipients. Police have alleged that the network forged kinship certificates, medical tourism records and recommendation letters purportedly issued by elected representatives to circumvent safeguards under the Transplantation of Human Organs and Tissues Act (THOTA).
Investigators suspect transplant recipients were charged between ₹20 lakh and ₹25 lakh, while donors allegedly received only ₹5 lakh to ₹10 lakh. The remaining sums are suspected to have been distributed among agents, intermediaries and facilitators involved in arranging the transplants.
The ED is examining donor registries, transplant records, approval documents and financial transactions at hospitals that allegedly handled transplant procedures connected to the racket. Investigators are also probing whether any hospital personnel colluded with external agents or failed to detect forged documents used during the approval process.
How The Racket Was Uncovered
The case first emerged from an investigation by the Kollam City Police, which led to the arrest of agents Sreeja, 40, and Sudheer, 31, for allegedly arranging organ donations for financial gain. A donor identified as Vinod was also arrested. Mobile phones, forged Aadhaar cards and other incriminating documents were recovered during the investigation.
Police later alleged that digital evidence recovered from one of the accused exposed details of additional transplant procedures carried out in Ernakulam district, significantly widening the scope of the probe. Investigators believe Najeeb’s company, Kallatras Medical Tourism Pvt Ltd, may have facilitated nearly 40 illegal transplant procedures over the past five years.
Rajagiri And Lakeshore Hospitals Draw Attention
The inclusion of both VPS Lakeshore Hospital and Rajagiri Hospital among the institutions searched has attracted particular attention because of the role of veteran gastroenterologist Dr. Philip Augustine in the history of both hospitals.
Dr. Philip Augustine was the founder, chief promoter and Managing Director of Lakeshore Hospital, one of Kerala’s most prominent private healthcare institutions. He later moved to Rajagiri Hospital, where he currently heads the Centre of Excellence in Gastrointestinal Sciences. His son, Dr. Cyriac Abby Philips, popularly known on social media as “The Liver Doc”, is the hepatologist associated with Rajagiri Hospital – this hospital is owned and managed by the Rajagiri (CMI) group of institutions. On checking who this CMI group belongs to, it becomes clear that CMI stands for Carmelites of Mary Immaculate.
An Earlier Organ Transplant Controversy – Dr Philip Augustine Was Allegedly Involved
The searches have also revived discussion surrounding another organ transplant controversy dating back to 2009 involving Lakeshore Hospital when Dr Philip Augustine was associated with them. The case related to the death of Abin V.J., a motorcycle accident victim who was declared brain dead before his organs were harvested and transplanted, including a liver transplant involving a Malaysian recipient.
The matter later became the subject of legal proceedings after complaints alleged irregularities in the declaration of brain death, procedural violations during organ retrieval and possible breaches of transplantation laws. Court proceedings were initiated against Lakeshore Hospital and several doctors, including Dr. Philip Augustine.
Augustine has consistently maintained that the transplant was conducted lawfully, with the consent of the family and in accordance with applicable regulations.
ED Focuses On Financial Trail
While the ED’s ongoing investigation is focused on the alleged money laundering aspects of the current organ trafficking racket, the searches at both Lakeshore and Rajagiri have once again placed Kerala’s organ transplantation ecosystem under intense scrutiny.
Officials said the investigation remains ongoing and is aimed at identifying the full financial trail behind the alleged racket, the role of agents and facilitators, and whether proceeds of crime were routed through legitimate businesses or institutions. Further questioning of hospital administrators, doctors and intermediaries is expected as investigators continue analysing documents and financial records seized during the raids.
The Same Names Surface As Kerala’s Organ Trade Scandal Deepens
The latest ED raids have thrown up a striking coincidence: some of the very same hospitals and personalities that surfaced during Kerala’s earlier organ transplant controversies are once again in the spotlight. VPS Lakeshore Hospital, which figured prominently in the controversial 2009 organ transplant case, now finds itself among the institutions being searched in a fresh organ trafficking investigation, while Dr. Philip Augustine’s association spans both Lakeshore and Rajagiri Hospital, another hospital under the ED scanner. Though the two cases are separated by nearly two decades and involve different allegations, the re-emergence of the same institutions and familiar names is certain to invite renewed scrutiny and uncomfortable questions.
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