Newborn Stolen From Jharkhand Hospital Found, 3 Arrested: Police

In an operation that lasted around 31 hours, the police recovered a newborn girl who was stolen from a hospital here shortly after her delivery, an officer said on Thursday.

Two women and a minor girl allegedly involved in stealing the baby from Shahid Nirmal Mahto Medical College Hospital (SNMMCH) in Saraidhela police station area were apprehended, he said.

Acting on a tip-off, a raid was conducted around 9.30 pm on Wednesday in Barbadih Tola area and the infant recovered from the second floor of a two-storey building, the officer in-charge of Saraidhela police station, Kishore Tirki, told reporters.

Kajal Devi, her mother Tejia Devi and a minor girl - who were apparently seen in CCTV footages fleeing the hospital with the newborn -- were taken into custody.

They had reportedly stolen the baby from outside the labour room around 2 pm on Tuesday.

Kajal Devi, who was sitting next to the room, had allegedly taken the infant from her grandmother and escaped, even before an alarm could be raised.

Gudia Devi, the newborn's mother who refused to leave the hospital without her child, was handed over her daughter late on Wednesday, Tirki stated.

The two accused, when interrogated, claimed that Kajal Devi, having failed to bear a child of her own, stole the infant from the hospital as she wanted to raise one, the officer said, adding that more details will be available in the case after a thorough investigation.