VIJAYAWADA: A couple handed over their three-day-old baby boy to a quack on learning that he was suffering from abnormalities in the brain and spinal cord as they reportedly could not afford his treatment. The incident came to light when an alert auto driver noticed an elderly man carrying a baby in a bag and informed the police.
According to Ibrahimpatnam Circle inspector P Srinu, a woman from Jangareddygudem in West Godavari district, identified as Lavanya Priya, delivered twins at a private hospital in Enikepadu in Vijayawada on Saturday afternoon. Doctors told the couple that the baby was born with abnormalities. The parents were reportedly informed that the infant might not survive.
Infant reunited with parents, quack taken into custody
When the boy’s father, Balaji, brought the baby to the Vijayawada Government General Hospital (GGH) for treatment, a nurse reportedly advised him to take the baby to a quack. She also suggested the name of one of her relatives, who lives in Chandarlapadu in the NTR district.
Balaji went to Ibrahimpatnam and handed over the infant to Venkatesh (68), who put the baby in a bag and boarded an auto to reach home.
“When the auto hit a speed breaker, the baby began crying. The driver suspected that something was wrong and immediately informed the police,” the CI explained. While Venkatesh has been taken into custody, police reunited the infant with his parents and asked them to get him treated at the Vijayawada GGH.