At a time when we often come across incidents of violence in the name of cow protection, this certainly comes as a refreshing tale of communal harmony. Mansoor Rafi, a 45-year-old from Bareilly, UP, was in urgent need of a kidney transplant. He was asked by doctors to arrange for one of his blood-relatives who matched his blood type and who was willing to donate him a kidney.
“He was medically fit as he was undergoing dialysis regularly. However, I told him that there was an urgent need for a kidney transplant. I asked if he had blood-related donors who would volunteer to donate a kidney,” said Dr Vikram Kalra, Senior Consultant, Nephrology and Renal Transplant, VPS Rockland Hospital.
However, Rafi told the doctors that none of his blood relatives were willing to donate him a kidney and his wife’s blood group was different. But there was one friend, a Hindu, who was willing to be the donor.
The doctors had to explain to Rafi how difficult it was to accept a donor who was not related to him. However, he was further informed that there was a small chance for the operation to go ahead if he could prove that he had a longstanding emotional relationship with the donor. Rafi had to prove that his relationship with his Hindu friend before his ailment was diagnosed was emotionally strong.
To prove his longstanding friendship with the 44-year-old Vipin Kumar Gupta, Rafi showed them photographs that were taken 12 years ago, when he and Gupta had visited the Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti Dargah in Ajmer with their families.
“I told them that both our families had visited the Dargah. We also visited the Balaji Temple on our way back. Some of the photographs also showed our neighbours, who are witness to our relationship,” Rafi told Indian Express.
The case was first referred to the state authorization committee which examines any financial transaction involved or whether the donor was donating the organ willingly.
Rafi’s case was rejected thrice by the committee. However, the approval came in May this year and the kidney transplant was carried out earlier this month, making this one of the few known cases of organ donation that were carried out on grounds of “affection and attachment.”
When Gupta was asked the reason behind his affection, he described Rafi as his Guru and said, “In 2001, I used to work in my father’s sweet shop. Rafi used to visit us. I told him that I wanted to learn to drive. For months, he took out time to train me. Today, if I am able to provide for my family, it is because of him. This is just a small gesture”.
Playing down his donation as a small gift, he said, “Seven years ago, my wife suffered a complication during my daughter’s delivery. I did not have money for her treatment… It was Rafi who took care of everything.”
According to Dr Ambar Khaira who carried out the transplant, since both the donor and the recipient were drivers and earning nearly the same salaries, it was well established that there was no financial transaction involved and that it was a genuine case of a donor donating his kidney to his friend.
