Kottayam: Police have launched an investigation into an alleged baby trafficking racket that lured pregnant women from other states to Kerala with promises of financial assistance in exchange for their newborns.

The probe began after a 22-year-old woman from Assam lodged a complaint with the Kottayam District Police Chief. She alleged that she was promised ₹3 lakh and free delivery expenses on the condition that she hand over her baby after childbirth. The woman alleged that two other pregnant women were staying with her in the same house in Teekoy, where the group housed expectant mothers before delivery.

The woman, who already has a one-and-a-half-year-old daughter, said she was forced to leave her home after becoming pregnant for a second time. She alleged that her husband and family pressured her to undergo an abortion. When she refused and instead expressed willingness to give the child up for adoption, they asked her to leave and return only after the delivery.

She later stayed at a shelter run by a voluntary organisation. While searching Instagram for NGOs that facilitate legal adoption, she came across an account called Arshiv Care. A man identifying himself as Karthik contacted her through the account. After reviewing her scan reports and other medical documents, he arranged her travel to Kottayam by sending ₹2,000 and a train ticket.

According to her complaint, she was taken to a secluded house amid rubber plantations in Teekoy near Pala, where she stayed for 10 days. Two pregnant women from Odisha were also staying there.

She alleged that one of the women was sent away after scan results reportedly showed complications. Another woman delivered her baby, handed the child over to the group, received money and left.

The complainant said she later overheard members of the group discussing trafficking her after getting the baby. Alarmed, she confronted them and managed to retrieve her phone and personal documents.

When she insisted on returning home, she alleged that she was brutally assaulted and thrown out of the house. She then reached the Erattupetta police station and lodged a complaint.

The complaint names eight people, including Karthik, Anita, Arjun and Harshitha, all of whom she says she can identify. The investigation has been entrusted to the Pala DySP.

The woman further alleged that pregnant women were admitted to hospitals under the names of the intended recipients of the babies.

"Anita, a member of the group, is reportedly a nurse at a hospital in the area. After delivery, the biological mothers are paid and sent away. They kept a large file containing details of the babies," she claimed.

She described the house in Teekoy as sparsely furnished, with only two cots and a television, despite the occupants carrying premium smartphones.

"It was a large house, but they mostly survived on parcel food. They lived as though they could vacate the place at any time. I believe they mixed something into the food served at night," she alleged.

The woman maintained that she never intended to sell her baby.
"I was only looking for someone to adopt and raise the child. They were the ones who offered me money," she said.

She recounted travelling by train to Kottayam before being instructed to take a KSRTC bus to Erattupetta, where she was picked up in an autorickshaw and taken to Teekoy.

"I was afraid they might sell me too, so I somehow managed to get back my documents and phone. When I refused to hand over the baby, they hit me. They brought a large machete and threatened to kill me. I kept shouting, and eventually they threw me out," she alleged.

She said she stood by the roadside for some time before asking a passerby for directions to the nearest police station. The woman alerted the police, who then came to her assistance.

"I want to give birth to my child. If it is a boy, perhaps my husband and his family will change their attitude," she said.

"We were shocked to hear about the woman's ordeal. We immediately made her file complaints with the District Police Chief and the Erattupetta police," said Annie Babu, director of the Gandhinagar Santhwanam Charitable Trust, where the woman had been staying temporarily.

"We also alerted the police over the phone to prevent the accused from escaping. She plans to return to her husband and daughter after the delivery," Annie added.