CHENNAI: The Tambaram city police arrested a couple and four more people for selling their 6-month-old girl for Rs 2.2 lakh on Wednesday.

The couple, residents of Kannagi Nagar, who already have two daughters, sold their third child, as a pre-planned move, the police said. The arrested persons were identified as S Sriju (27), his wife, Vinisha (23), Sarala (51), Sivaranjani (22), Sagayamary (39) and Sumathi (35).

Sriju is unemployed and engages in menial jobs from time to time, while Vinisha works as a housekeeping staffer at a private firm.

The couple decided to sell the girl child with the consent of Sarala, Sriju's mother. The police said that the child was born in May 2025. Vinisha had approached her friend Sivaranjani to find a potential buyer, who sought Sagayamary, her mother-in-law. Sagayamary then put them in touch with Sumathi, a flower vendor from Padi.

Sumathi had informed Sriju and Vinisha about a couple from Tiruvannamalai - Shanthini and Niyamatullah - who agreed to pay Rs 2.20 lakh to the biological parents. A deal was struck, and in August, Niyamatullah paid Rs 1 lakh as an advance and took the child.

However, he did not pay the remaining amount, leading to a confrontation between Sriju and Niyamatullah. The Chengalpattu Child Welfare Committee (CWC) authorities, who learned of the matter, approached the Kannagi Nagar police, who arrested the accused. The police are likely to arrest the Tiruvannamalai couple, too.