New Delhi: A newborn boy, allegedly sold by his father for Rs 2.5 lakh to a woman in Punjab , was recovered from Haryana ’s Jind, police said. Two people, including the father, have been apprehended.
Police found that a 55-year-old man, who works as a tailor, lives with his wife and five children. The baby, their sixth child, was born on Aug 28. Police received a PCR call Wednesday night from a neighbour about the alleged sale. A team reached the location in southwest Delhi’s Uttam Nagar and met the caller.
The man allegedly told police that he didn’t have the means to raise another child and knew a 72-year-old woman who lived in the neighbourhood and worked as a domestic help. A case was registered under Section 81 (sale and procurement of children for any purpose) of Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015, at Uttam Nagar police station. The investigation revealed that the gang members allegedly acted as intermediaries, arranging children for couples who were looking to adopt outside the legal process.
The woman allegedly told him that she could arrange for someone willing to take the newborn. The woman had earlier lived in Punjab and known another woman there who was looking for a baby for a relative, according to police. A police team was sent to Fagwara in Punjab to trace the child and the people allegedly involved in the transaction. Based on technical surveillance, the newborn was found in Jind. In July, Delhi Police busted a gang allegedly involved in selling newborns and infants to childless couples. Police also found that some parents were allegedly handing over or selling their children to such gangs for money.