CHENNAI: The Kasimedu police have secured four women for selling a month-old infant to a woman in Erode for Rs 3.8 lakh. The police said that the mother of the child, a 25-year-old woman, is among those detained.
The woman gave birth to a boy in December at the RSRM government hospital in Royapuram, police said, adding that she decided to sell her newborn due to financial difficulties in the family. She already has three children - two sons, aged 10 and 2 and a 7-year-old daughter.
Learning about the mother's situation, three women from her neighbourhood who learnt of a woman from Erode looking to adopt a child set up a deal to sell the child.
In December, the Erode woman came to Kasimedu, where the baby was handed over to her for Rs 3.80 lakh. The mother was given Rs 3 lakh, while the three women who brokered the deal shared the Rs 80,000 among themselves.
The sale came to light after the mother's relatives questioned her about the newborn and created a commotion. The city police's intelligence unit, which learnt of the events, alerted the Kasimedu police for further investigation.
After this, the women were secured and produced before the Child Welfare Committee (CWC) on Tuesday for further proceedings.
A team has been sent to Erode to secure the child. Legal action will be initiated after completion of the enquiry, as investigations are underway, if the woman who brought the child was looking to adopt or if she was part of any child-sale racket, police said.