Karnataka may allow living donors to give organs to anonymous recipients

The Karnataka government has informed the high court that it is considering drafting a policy or guidelines to permit altruistic organ donations from living individuals to anonymous recipients. This proposal emerged following the court's request last week for the government to disclose its stance on altruistic organ donation. The case involves a 52-year-old businessman from Davangere district who seeks permission to donate one of his kidneys to an anonymous individual in need.

During a hearing, Justice Suraj Govindaraj instructed the government advocate to formulate a policy, while previously emphasizing that private hospitals cannot facilitate organ donation in such cases. The court also noted that a clear policy would save altruistic donors from lengthy court proceedings and allow deserving patients to receive life-saving transplants more quickly.

The high court decided this year's first case of altruistic organ donation on November 25, 2025, when it granted permission to a 58-year-old doctor to donate a kidney to another person as an altruistic donor, without any compensation. Previously, the hospital's authorization committee had denied her request for organ donation.