A two-day-old baby girl, who was stolen from the women’s post-operative ward at the Cuddalore Government General Hospital on Saturday, was traced to a government hospital in Puducherry within hours of the incident.
Police sources said Bhagyalakshmi, 24, wife of Manikandan of Panruti, was admitted to the Cuddalore GH on Wednesday. She delivered a baby girl on Friday morning.
Her mother-in-law Kasapayi was helping her in the hospital. On Saturday afternoon, Kasapayi went to a temple near the hospital, when one Lavanya of Panithittu in Puducherry, befriended Bhagyalakshmi.
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She apparently told Bhagyalakshmi that her mother-in-law had asked her to bring the baby. Believing her words, Bhagyalakshmi handed over the baby to her.
Bhagyalakshmi and Kasapayi found the baby missing and alerted the Cuddalore New Town police.
The police sifted through the images in the CCTV installed in the GH and found a woman going out with the baby from the hospital.
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An alert was issued and the police traced Lavanya with the baby at the Rajiv Gandhi Government Women and Children Hospital and arrested her. A case has been registered.