A child trafficking racket has been busted with the arrest of five women and the rescue of a four-day-old infant, police said on Saturday.
To nab the accused, police sent a male and a female officer posing as buyers. One of them was carrying the infant wrapped in a blanket. Police said the accused allegedly purchased the infant from a couple belonging to the economically weaker section for ₹ 2- ₹ 4 lakh and sold it to prospective buyers for a higher amount. “Around 10pm on August 7, they approached the accused and negotiated a deal to purchase a newborn for ₹ 6.5 lakh and paid ₹ 20,000 as token money, following which the accused called four women across the road. Police said the gang had allegedly been involved in trafficking newborns for around three years and had supplied 4-5 children to customers in the past.
Police said the gang also facilitated surrogacy through IVF and took possession of the child after delivery and sold it to a potential buyer. “Police received a tip-off about a 30-year-old woman and her associates arriving near Hanuman Mandir in Yamuna Bazar, Kashmere Gate, to sell a newborn,” said DCP (North) Raja Banthia. After the decoy customers signalled, a police team nabbed all five women,” said the DCP. Police said a case was lodged under the Juvenile Justice Act and BNS sections for child trafficking. Police said two of the accused are sisters, and a probe is underway to trace the sold babies and the couples involved.
“The infant was sent to Aruna Asaf Ali hospital.
The child helpline and child welfare committee were also informed,” said the DCP.
