Bengaluru police on Tuesday announced the arrest of seven people for allegedly running an illegal racket that bought and sold newborns, saying that they would target poor women from neighbouring Tamil Nadu, pay them to bear children and later sell them to childless couples for as much as ₹8-10 lakh.
The arrests followed the rescue of a 20-day-old baby boy, who, the police said, was to be sold to a couple in Rajarajeshwarinagar.
Bengaluru police commissioner B Dayananda said the mastermind behind the racket was a woman who had previously sold three of her own children.
“It is a significant racket in which trafficked babies are sold to childless parents at ₹8 lakh to ₹10 lakh. An interrogation by the central crime branch [CCB] revealed that they have sold 10 babies so far,” Dayananda said.
The commissioner said the modus operandi involved targeting poor women in Tamil Nadu.
“The gang paid them money to bear children, which were later sold to couples. Similarly, they also approached pregnant women facing financial hardships or those unable to care for their newborns, buying the infants for ₹2 lakh and subsequently selling them to childless couples for ₹8 lakh to ₹10 lakh,” the officer added.
In response to a question about the possible involvement of hospitals and nursing homes, Dayananda said the illegal operation was active between Tamil Nadu and Bengaluru for several years, and suspects in custody were also collaborating with private hospitals and doctors in Chennai.
“It has come to our knowledge that some doctors are also involved in this racket. These doctors were aware of the rackets and supported them. We will probe further into this angle in the coming days,” he said.
Dayananda said that the accused would liaise with childless couples, often encountered in hospitals, promising them newborns. To avoid legal repercussions, the gang allegedly prepared fake birth certificates, falsely attributing the child to the new parents. The police are working to identify other beneficiaries and accomplices involved in the racket.
The illegal operation came to light after a 20-day-old male child was rescued when the gang, whose members are mainly from Tamil Nadu, was seen in Rajarajeshwari Nagar under suspicious circumstances.
The arrested people have been identified as Suhasini, Gomathi, Kannan Ramaswamy, Hemalatha, Sharanya, Mahalakshmi, and Radh.
A case was registered at the Rajarajeshwari Nagar police station under sections 370(4) (trafficking of a minor) and 34(When a criminal act is done by several persons in furtherance of the common intention of all) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), along with sections 80 and 81 of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act.
This case follows the recent arrest of nine members of a female infanticide ring by Baiyyappanahalli police, including two doctors. Among those taken into custody were Dr Thulasiram from Chennai and Dr Chandan Ballal, a doctor affiliated with a private hospital in Mysuru.
This criminal group, arrested on Saturday, had been operating out of a sugarcane crushing unit in Mandya, where they identified pregnant women and conducted scans. Upon detecting a female foetus, they proceeded to perform abortions.
The chief minister’s office also took cognisance of the case. “Incidents of illegal abortions and sex determinations have come to my notice. I have asked the police to take stringent action against those responsible,” said CM Siddaramaiah.
