Police seize abortion medicines during raid at Shirur clinic
Pune: A BAMS doctor and his agent have been arrested by Pune police for allegedly running an illegal sex determination racket in Shirur taluka. During a raid conducted at the clinic, authorities also seized medicines commonly used for abortion procedures.
Case registered under PCPNDT Act
The accused have been booked under relevant provisions of the Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (PCPNDT) Act, 1994. The case has been registered with the Crime Branch Unit-7 in Wagholi.
Doctor allegedly used mobile application for tests
According to police officials, the doctor had been operating Life Care Hospital for several years and was allegedly using a mobile phone application to determine the sex of a foetus, which is strictly prohibited under the law.
Questions raised over availability of such devices
Advocate Megha Sontale, district legal advisor for the PCPNDT Cell in Pune, expressed concern about the easy availability of such applications. She said the accused initially claimed he had purchased the device at an exhibition and later said it was sourced from Mumbai but refused to disclose further details.
Tip-off led to joint operation by police and health officials
The illegal activity came to light after informers alerted the police. Authorities contacted Pune Civil Surgeon Dr. Nagnath Yempalle on March 1 and a joint team of Crime Branch officers and public health officials organised a decoy operation.
Decoy patient helped expose the racket
During the operation, female constable Pratiksha Pansare posed as a patient and approached the clinic through the agent. The sting operation revealed that the doctor was allegedly using a mobile application to determine the sex of the foetus.
Over 100 patient records found on doctor’s phone
Officials said the clinic was not registered under the PCPNDT Act and the accused, being a BAMS doctor, was not authorised to conduct such tests. During the investigation, authorities reportedly found records and reports of more than 100 couples stored in the doctor’s mobile phone along with evidence of online money transactions.
Police seize medicines, investigation continues
Investigators stated that the accused charged between Rs 1 lakh and Rs 1.5 lakh for each test. During the inspection of the clinic, officials also seized medicines commonly used for abortion procedures. Police said further investigation is underway to identify other possible links in the racket.
