The Chennai police busted a child trafficking racket involving private maternity homes in Delhi on Monday and arrested four persons who allegedly sold several children under the guise of adoption.
Two couples — Komal Varma, 33, and her husband Ricky Varma, 33 of Gazhiabad, and Amit Sharma, 33, and his wife Jaya Sharma, 29 of Shadhara, Delhi, were arrested by the anti-child trafficking unit of the city police at the Egmore railway station following investigation into the case of a woman who faked her pregnancy.
Yogesh Kumar of Chetpet and Padmini were married in 2016. Within two months, Ms. Padmini claimed to have become pregnant. Though medical reports said she had a tumour, Ms. Padmini did not disclose this to her husband or in-laws. She continued to fake her pregnancy after moving to her parents’ home in Egmore.
On January 11, 2017, Ms. Padmini reportedly told Mr. Kumar that she had given birth to a boy at the Government Hospital for Women and Children, Egmore. Before her husband reached the hospital, Ms. Padmini came home with a baby.
Mr. Kumar got suspicious and complained to the police. Investigation revealed that Ms. Padmini had procured the baby from an unknown person. Following a petition filed by Mr. Kumar, the Madras High Court directed the anti-child trafficking unit of the city police to probe the matter.
During interrogation, the four suspects confessed that they kidnapped the baby from Delhi. They sold it for ₹50,000. This is in violation of the norms for adoption and they had furnished forged documents to sell the baby.
Ranjith, inspector of the anti-child trafficking unit, said the suspects had also kidnapped children from other States, including Delhi and Uttar Pradesh. “We have lodged them in the Puzhal Central Prison. We are going to probe furtherin Delhi,” he said.
