The CID today exhumed bodies of two infants from the campus of an NGO.
Baby smuggling seems to be on the rise in Bengal. On Monday, three infants were found in a biscuit box at a nursing home at Baduria, north of Kolkata. On Friday, police stumbled upon 10 infants, all girls, hidden away in an old age home at Thakurpukur in south Kolkata.
Worse followed: bodies of two infants were dug up at Baduria, from a ground behind the office of an NGO that was allegedly involved in the racket.
Between the Baduria and Thakurpukur raids, another two nursing homes were searched in Kolkata city. At one on College Street, the Criminal Investigation Department police team (CID) also found cash: 200 US dollars, 2000 Honk Kong dollars, 1200 Euros, 15,000 rupees and gold.
"In all, 15 persons have been arrested and some of them are common to the four operations conducted so far," said Additional Deputy General of CID, Mr Rajesh Kumar. "We are trying to unearth the nexus. But many more nursing homes may be involved," he added.
On Friday, hours before dawn, a CID team working on a tip off, raided Purbasha, an old age home with 23 residents at Thakurpukur. On the top floor of the building, they found 10 infant girls, all between the ages of one to 10 months. The space was rented out by the owner of the building. He is being investigated.
"The babies arrived on 10th November," said a woman who claimed she was a nurse taking care of the senior citizens. "I have no idea who brought them or why."
"We got leads from Baduria probe, raided a nursing home at Behala and College Street and got tipped off about Purbasha," Mr Kumar said. "Some of the people arrested are common to all four operations."
Baduria was the first operation. Police suspect those involved would convince unmarried women to deliver their babies and leave. Married women were shown dead infants and told they had given birth to still born babies, when in fact they had not.
More horror. Bodies of two infants dug up at Baduria on Friday from a ground adjoining an NGO that is suspected to be involved in the racket. Why is not clear yet but many nursing homes across the state are apparently cogs in a giant baby smuggling business in Bengal.