Palanpur: An expansive probe initiated after the rescue of a four-year-old boy kidnapped for trafficking in Banaskantha on April 6 has exposed a sinister multi-state racket of abducting and selling newborn babies, mostly those whose parents were in dire need of money due to poverty.On Monday, the Banaskantha police caught three members of the Telangana-based ‘Murugan Gang’ led by the kingpin Murugan, who has allegedly abducted and traded at least 8 newborns – two each in Banaskantha and Maharashtra, three in Hyderabad and Telangana, and one in Delhi.On April 6, the police had launched ‘Operation Dev’ after rescuing a four-year-old boy of a Rajasthan couple and arrested two persons – Shailesh Gamar and Babu Bhagaro from Danta.Their interrogation exposed the widespread network of child trafficking allegedly operated by Bodashu Nagaraju alias Murugan Bodashu Venkati (32). Using technical surveillance and AI, the special team of Banaskantha police traced him to Kagaznagar in Telangana. Along with Murugan, they arrested Kasarapu Tirupathi Kasarapu Mallalah, a resident of Sirikonda, Karimnagar and Keleti Gangadhar Gangarajan, a resident of Madulata, Karimnagar.Explaining the gang’s modus operandi, Sumbe said, “Probe revealed a shocking operation involving IVF centres in Hyderabad. Murugan and his wife, Surakrishnaveni, would identify women at IVF centres who had low fertility and then arrange for healthy, highly fertile women to be sent to these centres. They established connections with Forty Nine IVF Centre, Secunderabad; Hegde IVF Centre, Banjara Hills; and Nova IVF Centre, Kukatpally Y Junction.““They received a commission of Rs 5,000 to Rs 6,000 per woman from these centres. However, realizing that selling newborns was more lucrative, they began procuring infants from various states and selling them through agents within 24 to 48 hours of birth, Rs 4 lakh to Rs 5 lakh per child,” Sumbe said.Murugan then allegedly formed a syndicate of agents across cities who targeted gullible and poor people in dire need of money and convinced them to sell their babies.Officials said Murugan has been involved in child trafficking for four years. He was previously arrested in connection with a case at the Chaitanyapuri police station in Hyderabad) and was held in Cherlapalli Central Jail for three months starting March 19, 2025. Murugan’s wife is also reportedly involved in a child trafficking case in Maharashtra, the police said.Other agents identified as Somu Amulya Mallesh, Shishivarani, Sisirigiri alias Rani Venkatarama Rao and Akaa, all in Hyderabad, Kavita Jadav in Mumbai and Badlapur (Thane), Rishi (R.K.) Sharmain Delhi, Rohidas in Mumbai, and Saroja in Vijayawada.Minor’s detention identified Murugan as kingpinPalanpur: Vital clues about Murugan emerged after the detention of a juvenile, who is just 15 days shy of turning 18, in connection with the abduction of the four-year-old on April 6 in Banaskantha. His name cropped up during the interrogation of Gamar and Bhagora. The police nabbed him from a bus on the Vadodara-Mumbai highway a few days ago with Rs 1.5 lakh cash.“The minor’s mother from Aravalli is presently lodged in Rajahmundry Central Jail for child trafficking. She was part of Murugan’s network and told her son to carry on with her work,” said Sumbe.Gamar, who was introduced to the juvenile by Babu, tried to strike a deal with him to sell the four-year-old. But he was caught when the boy was rescued the same day.
