New Delhi: In a nine-hour-long proceeding, a Delhi court today recorded statements of a doctor aide of the multi-crore rupee kidney transplant racket kingpin Dr Amit Kumar and a tout allegedly involved in the case.

Two accused -- Dr Saraj Kovind and Gyasuddin -- were produced before Metropolitan Magistrate Chandra Shekhar, who recorded their statements under Section 164 of the Criminal Procedure Code. Another accused Jagdish, who was also brought to the court, could not record his statement due to paucity of time. His statement would now be recorded on February 25.

The court had earlier allowed the three accused to record their statements and sent them to judicial custody to give them a chance to re-consider their decision as their statement could be used against as evidence during the trial.

The CBI had on February 21 filed the applications before the court stating that the three accused, who were in its custody, wanted to record their confessional statements. "They want to make their statements before the court. They have also shown a desire and willingness to confess their guilt and state all facts within their knowledge," the agency had claimed.

Dr Kovind was accused of helping Dr Kumar in performing surgeries at his nursing home in Gurgaon while Jagdish and Gyasuddin were allegedly working as a technician and a tout for arranging donors, respectively.

The case was registered against Kumar and others including the three accused by the CBI on February eight relating to sections 420 (cheating), 342 (illegal confinement), 326 (causing grievous hurt), 506 (criminal intimidation) and 120-B (criminal conspiracy) of IPC and section 18 and 19 of Transplantation of Human Organs Act of 1994.

Source : PTI