The Delhi High Court has permitted a 17-year-old boy to donate a portion of his liver to his father after finding that the case met the exceptional medical grounds required under the Transplantation of Human Organs and Tissues Rules, 2014. The Court noted that the teenager was the only medically compatible donor and that the necessary approval had already been granted by the competent authority.
Background of the Case
The petition was filed by Pratik Shaw, a minor represented through his mother and natural guardian, seeking permission to donate part of his liver to his father, Uttam Kumar Shaw. The father is undergoing treatment at the Institute of Liver and Biliary Sciences (ILBS), New Delhi, for advanced chronic liver disease with cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma. According to the medical records placed before the Court, a liver transplant was the only viable life-saving treatment, and no other suitable family donor was available.
Justice Mini Pushkarna observed that while organ donation by minors is generally prohibited, Rule 5(3)(g) of the Transplantation of Human Organs and Tissues Rules permits such donation in exceptional medical situations with prior approval.
The bench observed,
“There is no absolute statutory bar for donation of living organ by a minor,”
provided the legal requirements are strictly complied with. The Court also noted that the petitioner was physically fit, had voluntarily agreed to donate, and there was no element of coercion or commercial gain.
Taking note of the medical urgency, the approval granted by the Appropriate Authority and the Lieutenant Governor of Delhi, and the absence of any other compatible donor, the High Court allowed the writ petition. It directed ILBS to proceed with the transplant while ensuring full compliance with all legal, ethical, and clinical safeguards to protect the minor donor.
Case Details:
Case Title: Pratik Shaw (Minor) Through His Mother & Natural Guardian Smt. Vandana Shaw v. Union of India & Ors.
Case Number: W.P.(C) 4045/2026
Judge: Justice Mini Pushkarna
Decision Date: 29 June 2026
-300x169.webp)
