A Tamil Nadu woman was arrested after it was found that she used to sell newborn children. Amudha, a retired nurse, was arrested by Namakkal police some days ago. In disturbing detail, it has emerged that the woman offered babies at varying prices depending on their skin colour, weight and the like.
According to a conversation accessed by The News Minute, a female baby would cost Rs 2.7 lakh, and a male baby Rs 3.5 lakh. "The rate depends on gender, colour and weight. If it is a female, the rate begins at Rs. 2.70 lakh. If the girl is fair and is of good weight the price could go up to Rs.3 lakh. For a dark baby boy the rate is between Rs.3.30 lakh and Rs.3.70 lakh and if you want a beautiful Amul baby it is over Rs.4 lakh," Amudha said on the phone, reports TNM.
She added that the buyer could give Rs 30,000 as an advance and the rest of the transaction could be done after the customer receives the baby.
For an extra Rs 70,000, Amudha would be able to get the child's birth certificate with the names of the parents on it. She assured the buyer that she would get the certificate from the Municipality in one month. She added that since this is an illegal process, it will take some time. She assured the prospective parents that they needn't worry about the birth certificate since it will look just like an original one. The process of getting it will be a bit difficult because nowadays, everything is done online.
How did she procure babies?
The Namakkal police said that they are looking closely into Amudha's activities. They discovered that Amudha was involved in the sale of three babies, all girls. However, she said that one sale was done legally. It's not explained how anyone can sell a baby legally. The police are still in the dark on how Amudha manages to procure the babies to sell.
"We have secured her and are investigating what has happened. She claims to have been in this business for 10 years. She retired from the government hospital in 2012. So far, she has admitted that she has been part of three sales. All of them are baby girls. One however she claims was done legally. Our team is procuring the documents to see if they were falsified," Ara Arulasu, the Superintendent of the Namakkal police was quoted as saying by TNM.
A growing baby sale racket
One of the main reasons why the sale of babies is increasing is the stricter adoption laws brought about in India. One of the main rules is that a single male is not allowed to adopt a child.
Due to the tightening of the norms, the adoption of babies in India could take a few months to a few years. Hence desperate parents resort to illegal means to get a baby. They do not take into account the repercussions of illegally procuring a baby. Due to this Amudha warned the customers on the phone to be careful of their neighbours who may grow suspicious after seeing a baby suddenly in the house.
