Grandma among five held for stealing baby in Odisha

KEONJHAR: Police on Monday arrested five persons including three women for allegedly stealing a newborn girl from her father at Saheed Laxman Naik Medical College and Hospital (SLNMCH), and rescued the baby from Kundra block in Koraput district. 

The arrested include the baby’s grandmother Gongai Gouda. Others were Basanti Gouda, Tuna Harijan, Hemant Mohuria and Ranjita Mohuria. The newborn was missing since last Friday.

Koraput SDPO Gunanidhi Mallik said one Damu Singh Gouda had brought his wife Tulasina to SLNMCH at Koraput after she developed complications during childbirth. Gouda belonged to Silakguda under Papadahandi block in Nabarangpur district. 

However, Tulasina died before she could be admitted to the hospital. As the baby girl could not be fed by her mother, Gongai was asked to admit her to the special newborn care unit (SNCU) of the MCH.

Damu was then told by Gongai and other relatives to take Tulasina’s body back to their native village for the last rites while they would join him after conducting the baby’s medical examination at the SNCU.

The SDPO said Gongai with the help of Tuna handed over the baby to Hemant and Ranjita, a childless couple of Mundaguda in B Singpur instead of taking her to the SNCU and claimed that the newborn was missing from the hospital.

When Damu returned to Koraput, he found that his baby daughter was not in the SNCU. He and his family members including Gongai lodged a complaint with the police in this regard. 

Police started investigation and on checking the CCTV footage, found that Hemant and his wife had taken the baby from Gongai, Basanti and Tuna. They later handed over the newborn to another childless couple of Kuagam village in Kundra.

Police arrested all the persons involved in the incident and rescued the baby from the childless couple of Kundra. The newborn was handed over to her father Damu by district child development officer Rajashri Das.