Ghaziabad: A portable ultrasound machine, probe jelly and a power unit connected to a battery had turned an Ertiga into a moving illegal sex determination clinic, allowing a four-member gang to allegedly conduct foetal gender tests from inside the vehicle while constantly changing locations to evade detection.Acting on a tip-off, a joint team of police and officials under the Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (PCPNDT) Act laid a trap near Mahamaya Stadium early on Sunday and arrested four men allegedly involved in the racket. Police seized the portable ultrasonography (USG) machine, accessories used for the scans and Rs 20,000 in cash.Those arrested were Sandeep Kumar (38) of Baghpat, Tasleem alias Sahil Rana (48) of Bulandshahr, Salman (26) from Hapur and Sahid Ahmad (46) of Ghaziabad.ACP Upasana Pandey said the raid was carried out after an informer alerted police that sex determination tests were being conducted inside an Ertiga. A PCPNDT team was constituted, with the SDM nominating a naib tehsildar to join the operation before the vehicle was intercepted.“Inside the car, the team found a portable USG machine, probe jelly and equipment that drew power from the vehicle to run the machine,” Pandey said.During questioning, Salman allegedly admitted that he conducted the scans, while Sandeep arranged contacts with Sai Hospital, where illegal abortions were allegedly carried out. Tasleem and Sahid, police said, brought pregnant women to the vehicle. The gang had already conducted foetal sex determination tests on two women and was waiting for a third when the team struck.According to police, the accused charged between Rs 5,000 and Rs 10,000 for each test.An FIR was registered under sections 61(2) (criminal conspiracy), 318(4) (cheating) and 319 (cheating by personation) of the BNS, along with relevant provisions of the PCPNDT Act. The accused were produced before a court and remanded in judicial custody.Sandeep, police said, had earlier been arrested in 2025 in a similar case.
