Homoeopathic doctor, wife booked for selling newborn babies

Resources Authority (CARA) and District Women and Child Welfare Committee busted a racket of human-trafficking in which a homoeopathic doctor was allegedly involved in selling newborn babies at a hospital, following a raid in Ichalkaranji, Kolhapur, on Tuesday. He confessed to selling a new-born to a couple in Mumbai.

A case has been filed against him, his wife and the couple who adopted the baby, police said. Police said the couple will be arrested after interrogation. The doctor, Arun Patil, confessed to selling two babies in three months. He said he charged Rs 2 lakh for a baby.

Priyadarshini Chorage, district head of the Child Welfare Committee (CWC), who was part of the team that conducted the raid at General Surgical and Maternity Hospital, said they received information from CARA officials about the illegal activities on Monday. "When we entered the hospital and asked Patil about the racket, he confessed. He claimed he was doing it in the interest of society and it was for free. He used to facilitate deliveries for unmarried women and would then sell the babies. He used to hand over the money received to the mother."

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"He confessed to selling a four-day-old baby to a family in Chhattisgarh on December 23, 2017. The baby, born to a minor, was sold for Rs 2 lakh," she said. He also confessed to selling a newborn to a couple in Mumbai but has not revealed the details, she added.

"We have booked Patil, his wife Ujwalla and a couple who took the baby under several sections of Indian Penal Code, including 370, 317, 176 and sections 75, 80 and 81 of Juvenile Justice Act, 2015," said an officer attached to Shivaji Nagar police station.

"Our team also raided an orphanage in Korochi village, Hatkanangle, and rescued 14 children who were kept there illegally. The case has been handed over to Shahapur police," said Chorage.

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