In a heart-wrenching case of child trafficking, police in Tamil Nadu’s Tiruvarur district have arrested five people, including the newborn’s own father, for allegedly selling a 12-day-old baby for ₹1.5 lakh. The baby, a boy, has been rescued and placed in the care of a government-run children’s home.

The incident came to light when Santoshkumari, a widow, approached police claiming her baby was forcibly taken from her on July 25. She had delivered the child at Thanjavur Government Medical College Hospital on July 13 and was on her way home when the alleged abduction occurred.

Father, Broker, and Buyers Part of Shocking Conspiracy

The accused father, Dinesh, reportedly in a relationship with Santoshkumari despite being married, is alleged to have conspired with his mother Vasugi and a broker, Vinoth, to sell the baby. The buyer was a childless couple, Radhakrishnan, an employee of Tamil Nadu State Marketing Corporation (TASMAC), and his wife Vimala, from Adichapuram village in Mannargudi taluk.

All five including Dinesh, Vasugi, Vinoth, and the couple, have been arrested and booked under relevant charges.

Authorities Rescue Infant, Await Evaluation Before Reuniting

After swift action by local police, the baby was safely traced and rescued. However, authorities say the child will not be returned to the mother immediately.

“We do not want to endanger the newborn by returning him right away,” a senior officer told NDTV. “He will be handed over only after thorough counselling and evaluation of the mother’s situation.”

Similar Incident in Hyderabad

Hyderabad Police busted a major surrogacy and baby-selling racket operating out of the Universal Srushti Fertility Centre in Secunderabad. The police revealed how a baby was allegedly purchased from a poor couple for just Rs 90,000 and later sold to an unsuspecting Rajasthan couple for a staggering Rs 35 lakh, all under the pretext of a legitimate IVF procedure.

According to official statements, the Rajasthan-based couple had approached the clinic in August 2024, hoping to realise their dream of parenthood through IVF. But instead of the standard medical process, the clinic’s operators led by Dr Athaluri Namratha, aged 64, convinced the couple that surrogacy would be quicker and guaranteed that the child would be their own biological offspring. “They declared it would be our blood, our own baby,” one of the duped parents told police officials.

Trusting the clinic, the couple paid the hefty fee of Rs 35 lakh for the surrogacy arrangement. Months later, in June 2025, they were called to Visakhapatnam and told their surrogate had delivered a baby boy via C section. The clinic demanded an extra Rs 2 lakh for delivery expenses before handing over the infant, backed by forged documents attesting to the child’s supposed biological connection to the couple.

However, suspicion arose when the couple noticed discrepancies in the baby’s appearance and medical papers, prompting them to get a DNA test. The results revealed that the child was not biologically related to them, shattering their hopes. “The DNA tests did not match. It was a nightmare,” the couple said while giving their statement to the police.

A Safer Option for Desperate Parents

Tamil Nadu has long promoted its Cradle Baby Scheme, introduced in the 1990s, to prevent unsafe abandonments and female infanticide. The scheme allows parents to anonymously and safely surrender unwanted infants at designated hospitals and child welfare centers, a legal and humane alternative to illegal trafficking or abandonment.

This incident has reignited calls for greater awareness and support for vulnerable mothers to prevent such tragedies from recurring.