NEWS Minor Wants To Donate Liver To Father, Court Asks Hospital To Decide In 2 Days

The Bombay High Court on Wednesday directed a private hospital in Mumbai to decide within two days on an application submitted by a 16-year-old girl who wants to donate a part of her liver to her ailing father.

A division bench of Justices Revati Mohite Dere and Madhav Jamdar had earlier this week asked the Maharashtra government to take decision on the application filed by the girl, seeking permission to donate liver.

On Wednesday, government pleader P P Kakade told the bench that the authority which grants such permissions had not received any documents from the authorization committee of Global Hospital, where the patient is admitted.

Even if a hospital decides against an organ transplant, the state government can take an independent view, he added.

The girl, through her mother, has moved the court, seeking a direction to the state government to permit her to donate part of her liver to her father.

Her lawyer Tapan Thatte informed the court on Wednesday that the hospital was not accepting her form (application) as there was no clarity on the procedure to be followed when an organ donor is a minor.

The court then directed the hospital to accept the girl's form and take decision by May 6 when it would hear the case again.

As per the petition, the girl's father needs liver transplant as he has been diagnosed with `liver cirrhosis decompensated'.

Barring for petitioner girl, no other close relative was found medically suitable for donating liver, it said.

As the petitioner is a minor, to donate organ she needs approval from the state authority set up under the Organ Transplantation Act.