Dharamshala (Himachal Pradesh), February 21 The Himachal Pradesh Police has cracked down on a gang involved in trafficking newborns by posing as facilitators of adoption, and has arrested two individuals from Punjab and detained another, officials said on Saturday.
During the operation, a team from the Kangra police also rescued a minor, they said.
Dehra Superintendent of Police Mayank Choudhary said a complaint was lodged by Rohit Rana on Tuesday, in which he alleged that a person named Deepak Anand had cheated him of Rs 23,500 by falsely claiming to arrange the adoption of a newborn. An FIR was immediately registered.
Subsequently, the location of the accused was traced to Jalandhar in Punjab.
A special team conducted a targeted operation and apprehended Deepak Anand from Jalandhar, who was later remanded to police custody for further interrogation, the police said.
Further investigation revealed that Deepak was working as an agent for a gang based in Punjab involved in the trafficking of babies.
The police explained that Deepak would identify and contact couples who were unable to have children, and connect them with gang members operating from Punjab. The gang would then obtain infants through illegal means and hand them over to the couples in exchange for money.
The police also arrested another gang member, a woman, from Batala in Punjab, for her active involvement in the trafficking network. Another woman, identified as Anita from Jalandhar, has also been detained.
During the operation, the police also rescued a minor. The child has been handed over to a Special Adoption Agency to ensure proper care, protection, and legal safeguards, they said.
Further investigation is underway to identify and apprehend other members of the gang and to dismantle the entire trafficking network, the police said.