Baby Trafficking Racket Busted, 4-Year-Old Reunited With Mother

Hyderabad: The Hyderabad Police on Monday arrested three persons for allegedly selling a baby girl under the guise of adoption.

The arrested trio included the father of the now four-month-old girl who was allegedly sold to a couple in Visakhapatnam and two brokers, the police said. The girl has been rescued and re-united with her mother Fathima, who had lodged a complaint with the police alleging that her daughter had been sold for Rs 2 lakh, though she had given her away for adoption.

The arrested accused are identified as V Gangadhar Reddy, Shaik Khatoon (both brokers) and Shaik Yousuf, the father of the girl, DCP (South Zone) V Satyanarayana said. He said efforts are on to nab other absconding accused. "Gangadhar Reddy used to charge commission from women who want to become pregnant through IVF procedure and surrogacy. He also used to mediate for illegal adoption," the DCP said.

The officer said Khatoon contacted Shaik Yousuf at a government hospital here in July and convinced him to give his infant daughter for adoption. "When Yousuf consulted his wife, she refused to give her daughter for adoption. However, she eventually agreed after Yousuf threatened to divorce her," Satyanarayana said.

On September 5, Reddy, Khatoon and others took the baby from Yousuf and his wife and went to Visakhapatnam and contacted a couple who was willing to 'adopt'. "The accused told the couple that they are already having five children and they are unable to maintain them properly due to poverty and hence are giving them away in adoption," the officer said.

Though, the Vizag-based couple insisted for legal formalities, the accused said they are handing over the baby for two months to see if the couple can take good care of her. "They said they will give legal adoption after two months and collected Rs 1.70 lakh out of Rs 2 lakh from the couple," he said, adding they told the couple that they will collect the remaining Rs 30,000 after completion of the legal adoption procedure. As the accused shared the amount among themselves, Yousuf demanded more money from Reddy and Khatoon, which they refused to part with. Yousuf then asked his wife to file a complaint at Madannapet police station here recently.

Police also issued notices to six hospitals in the city asking them not to entertain the brokers in IVF and surrogacy matters.

PTI