Illegal prenatal gender determination racket busted in Chittoor; four arrested

Tirupati: In a major crackdown on illegal medical practices, the Chittoor district police busted an inter-state illegal prenatal sex determination racket operating in Bangarupalyam mandal. Following the directions from Chittoor SP to curb violations under the Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (PCPNDT) Act, a special team conducted a surprise raid and apprehended four members of the gang, besides seizing an unauthorised ultrasound scanning machine.The operation unfolded following a formal complaint lodged by Dr KS Lohith Changalrayan, the mandal medical officer at Thummakuppam Primary Health Centre.Under the supervision of the Palamaner DSP, a joint team comprising Bangarupalyam inspector Katti Srinivasulu, sub-inspector Ari Prasad, and officials from the medical and health department raided an under-construction house near Chandrasekharapuram village in Ragimanupenta Panchayat.During the surprise raid, officials caught the operators red-handed while performing illegal scans on pregnant women. Sensing the arrival of law enforcement personnel, a couple of suspects managed to flee the scene, while others were immediately taken into custody.Investigation revealed that the syndicate targeted pregnant women from neighboring Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. The operators contacted pregnant women over the phone and lured them to the Chittoor-Bangarupalyam border area under the false pretext of running a government-authorised scanning center. The gang charged approximately ₹10,000 from each client for the illegal fetal sex determination test. The police have identified 14 pregnant women as victims in this case and successfully recorded their statements.Bangarupalyam police have arrested four accused individuals in connection with the crime. They have been identified as B Padmavathi and V Jyothi from Chittoor, S Jyotesh from Bangarupalyam and N Roman Kumar from Chandrasekharapuram. All four arrested individuals have been produced before the court and sent to 14 days judicial remand on Sunday.Meanwhile, a manhunt has been launched to arrest two absconding key members of the racket, identified as B Sudhakar Reddy and Nagaraju, the latter being responsible for calling and bringing the clients from neighboring states.A criminal case has been registered at the Bangarupalyam Police Station under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) alongside sections 23 and 25 of the PCPNDT Act, 1994. Inspector Katti Srinivasulu stated that further investigation is underway to uncover any broader network or medical professionals linked to this illicit operation.