SALEM: Three persons, including a couple from Ramanathapuram district and a broker from Salem, have been arrested in connection with the alleged purchase of a newborn baby girl, while police have also registered a case against the child's biological parents from Salem for allegedly selling the infant.
The arrested have been identified as B Ramamoorthy (65) of Vembedithalam near Kondalampatti in Salem, who allegedly acted as the broker, and S Indirakumar (49) and his wife I Muthulakshmi (45), a couple from Ramanathapuram district, who allegedly purchased the newborn. Police have also booked the child's biological parents, P Srinivasan (43) and S Kavitha (24) of Kondalampatti in Salem district.
According to police sources, the complaint was lodged by the Salem District Child Protection Officer after information was received that a newborn baby girl had allegedly been sold illegally.
During the inquiry, officials found that Srinivasan and Kavitha, who already have three children — two daughters and a son — had delivered their fourth child, also a girl, at the Government Primary Health Centre in Poolavari on June 17.
Police alleged that, citing financial hardship, the couple sold the newborn baby girl to the Ramanathapuram couple for Rs 1.5 lakh at Uthamasolapuram on June 24, with the transaction allegedly being facilitated by the broker.
Acting on the information, officials of the District Child Protection Unit, along with the police, rescued the infant and placed the baby under the care of a government-recognised child care institution to ensure her safety.
Further investigation is under way to ascertain whether any other persons were involved in facilitating the alleged illegal sale of the newborn.