Vijayawada horror: 3DO baby put up for sale on WhatsApp; RMP held

Vijayawada: Shock, anger, and outrage have gripped Andhra Pradesh after a three-day-old baby girl was put up for sale on WhatsApp for Rs 3 lakh in Vijayawada. Police have arrested Registered Medical Practitioner (RMP) C Amrutha Rao of G Konduru Mandal.

According to the police, Amrutha Rao had posted a message on a WhatsApp group. "Female Baby. 3 kg. Rs. 3 lakh. Birth Certificate comes with own surname," the message read.

He also posted a photo and video of the baby girl. Kamalakar Rao, who saw the message, immediately informed Childline Coordinator Ramesh. Later a complaint was registered at Ajith Singh Nagar police station.

During questioning, Amrutha Rao said he received the message from RMP Puspalatha.

How did the story unfold?

RMP Puspalatha is the neighbor of the infant's mother, Durga. She already has two sons. Durga had reportedly told the RMP that if the third child turned out to be a boy, her husband may not accept and she would give him up for adoption.

However, Durga delivered a baby girl. Soon after the delivery, Pushpalatha visited the hospital and took photos and videos of the infant. He forwarded the message to Amrutha Rao and asked him to put the baby up for sale. The message was shared by Amrutha Rao in other groups.

The infant's mother said everything happened without her consent and she was unaware of the situation on social media platforms.

A case under section 81 of Juvenile Justice Act read with 511 of IPC. Police are trying to zero in on other people involved in the illegal adoption scam by RMPs.

Previous cases of illegal adoption

For the last few months, several cases of illegal adoption of infants have surfaced in Andhra Pradesh. In March, Andhra Pradesh police cracked a human trafficking network and rescued a baby girl who had been sold seven times in two months. The father sold the baby first for Rs 70,000. Police recovered a baby from Eluru. The baby was sold for Rs 2,50,000. Police arrested 11 persons in the case.

Several infants were stolen from the hospitals in the recent past. They were put up for illegal adoption.