Hyderabad: The IVF scam that recently came to light in Gurugram has revived attention to one of the country’s largest inter-state surrogacy-linked child trafficking rackets, which was busted by Telangana police in 2025. Nearly a year later, the fallout continues, with two infants rescued in the operation still awaiting adoption into permanent homes.The infants are currently lodged at Sishu Vihar under the care of the state’s women and child welfare department.In both cases, childless couples were allegedly deceived and handed over newborns who were not biologically theirs. The fraud came to light after the parents, similar to the Gurugram case, conducted DNA tests on the children.When police raided the Hyderabad-based Srishti Fertility Centre in July last year, they found that its owner, Dr Athaluri Namratha, had allegedly defrauded multiple childless couples in a similar manner. In the name of surrogacy, she and her associates allegedly passed off unrelated babies as biological children of the couples in exchange for payments ranging between Rs 30 lakh and Rs 40 lakh.“The police operation found three children were born as part of the alleged racket. While one died shortly after birth, the other two are now almost a year old,” said Shruti Ojha, director, women and child welfare department. “We have completed all official procedures for one child and have listed the baby for adoption. In the case of the other child, we are awaiting approvals so that the infant can be declared legally free for adoption,” she added.Ojha said that once adoptive parents are identified, the process may take anywhere between three months and a year. “It works on a first-come, first-served basis. After parents are selected, we carry out verification procedures, counselling sessions, home visits and other formalities before the adoption is finalised,” she said.False claimsPolice investigation found that Dr Namratha targeted couples who had undergone multiple failed fertility treatments and allegedly lured them with claims of a “90% success rate”.“While couples believed they were undergoing legitimate surrogacy procedures, babies born to women with unwanted pregnancies were allegedly handed over to them as their biological children. The fraud began unravelling after suspicions were raised by two families,” said Chaitanya Kumar, DCP, Central Crime Station.In one case, a couple from Rajasthan grew suspicious as the child did not resemble them. “The baby had Mongoloid features that raised doubts. When they conducted DNA tests, they found the child was not biologically related to them,” said Vijay Sardhi, the investigating officer.In another case, the mother, a biologist by profession, questioned how the child’s blood group (B+) could differ from that of both parents (O+), prompting further inquiry and ultimately a complaint.Police said six more couples later approached them, alleging they too had signed up with the clinic for what they believed was a legitimate surrogacy procedure and had made partial payments of over Rs 10 lakh.The scamThe investigation, which led to the arrest of 25 people, found that couples were asked to provide sperm and eggs, creating the impression of a legitimate surrogacy process. They were then told that embryos had been successfully implanted in surrogate mothers and were provided with false pregnancy updates, radiology reports and other medical records.“The accused allegedly used agents to identify women with unwanted pregnancies, often from vulnerable backgrounds. After birth, the babies were handed over to waiting couples and passed off as children born through surrogacy arrangements,” a police officer said.All the accused are currently in judicial custody, while the Enforcement Directorate continues to probe the alleged financial fraud linked to the case.
