The Fatehgarh Sahib police have busted a human trafficking racket involved in the illegal buying and selling of newborns across states, arresting eight people, including an ASHA worker and a midwife.
The entire operation was carried out under the false pretext of adoption, exposing the involvement of certain health department employees in organized trafficking networks. Last week, three other individuals, including a health worker, were arrested for selling a newborn in Patiala district.
Police stated that a child born on June 23 at Deep Hospital in Mandi Gobindgarh town was sold by ASHA worker Kamlesh Kaur, her husband Bhim Singh, midwife Charan Kaur, and Amandeep Kaur alias Amrita from Jalandhar. The newborn was sold to Rupinder Kaur and Beant Singh for Rs4 lakh.
Following the arrests, the police recovered Rs4 lakh from the accused. The infant had been taken to Kolkata, but a police team successfully rescued the child on June 29. Rupinder, Beant, and their Kolkata-based contact Parshant Prashar were also arrested, and the newborn was presented before the Child Welfare Committee.
SSP Shubham Aggarwal explained that the traffickers target economically vulnerable families, purchase newborns for nominal amounts, and resell them at high prices. “The entire crime was conducted under the false pretext of adoption, qualifying it as a clear case of human trafficking,” he said.
Aggarwal also confirmed that the ASHA worker was a key conspirator and that the state health department has been informed to take appropriate action.
