Newborn baby sale racket busted in Kolar; five arrested

Kolar : In a shocking incident that exposes the dark side of poverty and illegal adoption networks, police in Srinivaspur town of Kolar district have busted a newborn baby sale racket and arrested five persons involved in the crime. The accused were caught red-handed while attempting to sell a seven-day-old infant for money.

According to police, the incident involved a couple who were living together without being legally married. The woman, identified as Neeta alias Anita, already had two children from her previous relationships. Her current partner Raghavendra also had a child from an earlier marriage. Due to financial difficulties, the couple allegedly decided to sell their third child soon after birth.

Police said Neeta and Raghavendra were struggling to manage their household expenses. Raghavendra works as a driver at Tata Electronics in Narasapura Industrial Area. With limited income and increasing family responsibilities, they felt they could not afford to raise another child. This led them to agree to an illegal deal proposed by an acquaintance.

Narayanaswamy, a resident of Kotragoli village, reportedly acted as a middleman. He convinced the couple that he knew a childless family willing to pay Rs 5 lakh for the newborn. Acting on this proposal, a deal was struck with Balakrishna and Manjula, a couple from Chintamani in Chikkaballapur district.

Seven days ago, Neeta delivered a baby boy at a private hospital in Srinivaspur. As per the agreement, arrangements were made to hand over the child to the buyers. However, local police received credible information about the illegal transaction and launched an operation.

During a late-night raid around 1.30 am, police caught all the accused while the baby was being handed over. Along with rescuing the infant, officers seized Rs 80,000 in cash that had been paid as an advance amount.

Those arrested include Neeta, Raghavendra, middleman Narayanaswamy, and the prospective buyers Balakrishna and Manjula. The rescued child has been handed over to the Child Protection Unit for further care and legal procedures.

Child Protection Officer Nagarathna said this is the second baby sale case reported in the district this year. “We are conducting a detailed investigation to find out whether a larger network is involved in such illegal activities,” she added.

The incident has raised serious concerns about growing child trafficking and illegal adoptions in the region. Authorities have appealed to the public to report any suspicious activities related to child sale or trafficking.