Kolhapur Police bust gang of bogus doctors conducting prenatal gender screening, female feticides

Two miscreants of a three-member gang were nabbed as the third accused managed to escape during the raid at a house in the Krantisinh Nana Patil Nagar area in Kolhapur. The gang of bogus doctors conducted illegal prenatal gender screening and female feticides.

Kolhapur (Maharashtra): Kolhapur Police, along with the city health team and 'Mahila Bal Kalyan Samiti' raided a house in the Krantisinh Nana Patil Nagar here and busted a three-member gang of bogus doctors on Tuesday night for 'conducting prenatal gender screening' and 'female feticides'.

While police detained accused Krishnat Jasud, and Ajit Dongre till late at night, the third accused Swapnil Patil escaped during the joint operation. A case has been registered against them at the Karveer police station and officials are on a search to nab Patil.

According to official sources, District Collector Rahul Rekhawar came across an advertisement published on social media assuring cent per cent chances of delivering a boy child if medicine subscribed by the bogus doctors were consumed. Information revealed that the trio was operating from a house in the Sri Lawn area of ​the ​Mhada Colony.

Rekhawar then ordered a joint inquiry by the City Health Department and the Police Women Child Welfare Committee team. Accordingly, the police set up a female officer as a dummy mother-to-be and contacted the fake doctors. The bogus doctors in turn invited the officer to the house in Kranti Singh Nana Patil Nagar where they ran the racket.

Sources added that upon reaching, the gang members asked the officer to pay one lakh rupees for the medicines. They also told her that for reassurance, a prenatal gender screening would be conducted after taking the medicine for seven days.

An abortion would be performed if the test showed a female fetus, the payment for which would have to be made separately. The female officer also found a sonography machine and other systems used for illegal gender diagnosis in the room.

As she confirmed about the miscreants and their illegal trade, the officer signalled to her colleagues following which the police along with members of the city health team rushed to the spot and conducted a raid and seized the sonography machine, abortion worm, and cash worth Rs 20,000.

Interrogation revealed that the bogus doctors prescribed unscientific treatments in their prognosis. They asked pregnant women to consume buffalo milk and its by-products to give birth to a male child. Also, they prescribed chicken meat and asked expecting mothers to avoid goat meat, eggs and fish.