Bihar Couple Arrested for Selling 3-Year-Old Daughter in Shocking Child Trafficking Case | Bhubaneswar News
Bhubaneswar: A daily wager couple from Bihar, who settled here a few months ago, allegedly sold their three-year-old daughter to a family in Pipili area of Puri district for Rs 40,000, police said on Wednesday after rescuing the child.
Seven persons, including the child’s parents and the woman who bought her, have been arrested on charges of child trafficking.
This is the fourth such incident of alleged child sale reported from different parts of the state in the last 40 days. In all cases, poverty was behind the alleged sale of babies, police sources said.
A man identified as Sarthak Mohanty lodged a complaint with Badagada police here on Tuesday, alleging the couple from Bihar, who were working at his house, sold their minor daughter to alleviate their financial plight.
“We registered a case and questioned the couple, who confessed to selling their child for Rs 40,000 to another couple in the Pipili area. We rescued the baby and informed the child welfare committee (CWC) and other govt authorities concerned. The Pipili couple, who do not have any children, also confessed to purchasing the child for Rs 40,000,” said inspector in-charge of Badagada police station, Trupti Ranjan Nayak.
Police detained four other women who acted as mediators in the alleged child sale. Police are verifying their antecedents and trying to find out whether they are a part of any child sale or trafficking racket.
Police sources said the couple from Bihar’s Banka district don’t have another child. “We have learnt that the woman is the stepmother of the baby. We are inquiring whether the couple deliberately sold their child by pretending to be poor. Action will be taken against them if they are found guilty of any wrongdoing,” another police officer said.
Last week, two complaints of child sale due to poverty, one from Rayagada and another from Balangir, had surfaced, prompting the govt to order separate probes by the district administrations.
In Rayagada, a poor couple allegedly sold their nine-day-old daughter for Rs 20,000 to a couple in Andhra Pradesh.
A similar case was reported from Khaprakhol block in Balangir district, where a couple allegedly sold their newborn daughter to a family because they were unable to raise another child due to poverty. When a probe was initiated, the child’s mother claimed she gifted her to a family, denying the allegation of child sale.
In Oct last week, a 17-day-old boy was allegedly sold by his parents for a few thousand rupees in Bargarh district.
Seven persons, including the child’s parents and the woman who bought her, have been arrested on charges of child trafficking.
This is the fourth such incident of alleged child sale reported from different parts of the state in the last 40 days. In all cases, poverty was behind the alleged sale of babies, police sources said.
A man identified as Sarthak Mohanty lodged a complaint with Badagada police here on Tuesday, alleging the couple from Bihar, who were working at his house, sold their minor daughter to alleviate their financial plight.
“We registered a case and questioned the couple, who confessed to selling their child for Rs 40,000 to another couple in the Pipili area. We rescued the baby and informed the child welfare committee (CWC) and other govt authorities concerned. The Pipili couple, who do not have any children, also confessed to purchasing the child for Rs 40,000,” said inspector in-charge of Badagada police station, Trupti Ranjan Nayak.
Police detained four other women who acted as mediators in the alleged child sale. Police are verifying their antecedents and trying to find out whether they are a part of any child sale or trafficking racket.
Police sources said the couple from Bihar’s Banka district don’t have another child. “We have learnt that the woman is the stepmother of the baby. We are inquiring whether the couple deliberately sold their child by pretending to be poor. Action will be taken against them if they are found guilty of any wrongdoing,” another police officer said.
Last week, two complaints of child sale due to poverty, one from Rayagada and another from Balangir, had surfaced, prompting the govt to order separate probes by the district administrations.
In Rayagada, a poor couple allegedly sold their nine-day-old daughter for Rs 20,000 to a couple in Andhra Pradesh.
A similar case was reported from Khaprakhol block in Balangir district, where a couple allegedly sold their newborn daughter to a family because they were unable to raise another child due to poverty. When a probe was initiated, the child’s mother claimed she gifted her to a family, denying the allegation of child sale.
In Oct last week, a 17-day-old boy was allegedly sold by his parents for a few thousand rupees in Bargarh district.
