Debt-ridden farmer says he sold kidney to repay loan; police arrest 4 money-lenders for 'extortion'

Chandrapur, Dec 16 (PTI) A farmer from Chandrapur district in Maharashtra claimed that he was forced to sell his kidney and repay a part of the loan amount he had borrowed from four money-lenders, prompting the police launch a probe and arrest the four accused, officials said.

A case was registered at the Brahmapuri police station against the four moneylenders on the charge of extortion and under the Maharashtra Money-lending (Regulation) Act, they said.

The distressed farmer, Roshan Sadashiv Kude (around 29), who is from Minthur village in Nagbhid tehsil, approached the police saying he had taken a loan of Rs 1 lakh at 40 per cent interest rate in 2021 from four local money-lenders.

The farmer owns four acres of land. Due to losses incurred in farming, Kude decided to start a supplementary business. He bought cows hoping to earn some income from dairy farming and borrowed some loan each from moneylenders from the area in 2021, sources in the police department said.

One of the moneylenders suggested selling a kidney. An agent took Roshan Kude to Kolkata and underwent a medical examination. After the examination, Kude had a surgery in Cambodia, and his kidney was removed. As per the farmer's claim, he received Rs 8 lakh in return, according to them.

Following this, the personnel of the Nagbhid police station contacted Kude and requested to cooperate with the investigation.

"We have requested Kude to provide all the information, including the doctor's details in Kolkata and the place where he underwent a medical examination. We went through his financial transactions and found that he borrowed some amount from few money-lenders. We have arrested four persons in this connection for questioning," said Chandrapur Superintendent of Police Sudarshan Mummaka.

Further investigation into the case is underway, the police said. PTI COR NP