CID finds surrogacy angle in child trafficking case probe

Kolkata: The state Criminal Investigation Department (CID) has come to know that the child traffickers target the poor and separated women for surrogacy and after birth, sell the baby at a high price.

The two-day-old baby who was rescued on Sunday from the clutches of the two child traffickers was also the child of a surrogate mother. She was born at an IVF centre in Bihar.

The CID officials have already searched several places in Bihar with one of the arrested persons identified as Manik Haldar. However, the mother of the newborn was not found till Friday. Sources informed that the racket is suspected to have spread its network not only in India but some other countries as well. However, it is subject to the verification after a proper investigation.

According to the CID, the ringleaders of the child trafficking racket use distressed women as surrogates. Later the child gets sold.

Behind this racket, IVF centers and illegal nursing homes are suspected to be connected, said detectives.

The sleuths have found that Haldar was involved in child trafficking for the past five years. So far, police came to know that Haldar had sold several babies in Kolkata and other states in the past five years.

According to the investigators, there are some inconsistencies in Haldar’s statement. Cops found multiple bank accounts of Haldar which are being checked. Transactions involving huge amounts of money have been spotted in Haldar’s bank account.