Interstate child trafficking racket surfaces in Hyderabad; one arrested

Police said that the main accused Samadhan Patil used to buy children aged one month to one year and sell them in Maharashtra in return of huge amounts of money.

Hyderabad: In the City of Pearls, the life of foetuses is being priced while they are still in the womb. Before the umbilical cord is cut, the hospitals are making agreements with the parents to sell off their infants. By paying that price, they are separating the babies from their mothers. A recent arrest of a man with a baby by the Dadar railway station near Mumbai has uncovered a major baby selling racket.

Mumbai Police has reached Hyderabad to trace the masterminds. Reliable sources said that doctors in some private and government hospitals have been questioned in this regard. The racket came to light after a Maharashtra couple filed a complaint at the Kurar Police Station in regarding the disappearance of their infant at the hospital.

During the police investigation, it was revealed that child smuggling agent Samadhan Patil was behind it. A police official said that he was caught by the Mumbai police at Dadar station while returning to Mumbai after failing to reach a bargain on the sale of a child he had bought in Hyderabad. Based on the information obtained from Patil, five other members of the gang were identified and arrested.

In the subsequent police investigation, it came to light that Samadhan Patil is a a baby selling agent in Nashik. Police said that Patil often comes to Hyderabad by train and collects the details of pregnant women. He then strikes a deal with the staff at the government and private hospitals to buy the babies in lieu of money.

Sources said that after the delivery, Patil used to hold discussions with the parents/family members of the child and tempts them to sell the babies by offering money in lakhs of rupees. Amid a huge demand for children among childless couples, sometimes the children are kidnapped from hospitals and other public places and then trafficked elsewhere.

Sources said that the main accused, Patil sends photos of children to customers via WhatsApp. After a positive response received from the customers, he used to pay Rs 2-3 lakh for each baby and takes them to Nashik at night, police said. Police said that Patil has so far trafficked 30-40 children aged one month to one year in Hyderabad and sold them in Nashik.

The Mumbai police is currently in Hyderabad to investigate the case with the help of the city police.