Hyderabad: Two women constables and the wife of a constable, all pregnant, got six doctors arrested and shut down four multi-specialty hospitals in Rachakonda.
The three pregnant women had volunteered for a special operation to crack down on doctors who were carrying out prenatal sex determination tests, which reportedly caused many women to terminate their pregnancies even in the eighth month.
Five months into her pregnancy Swathi (name changed) a police constable, joined Sub inspector of police Chilla Sailu in the special operation. On receiving specific information that prenatal sex determine tests were being conducted through a mediator, the two posed as a couple and approached Prasthanthi Hospital at Choutuppal.
Swathi walked into the hospital accompanied by another police officer from the Rachakonda She-team who posed as her friend, and the mediator. Chilla Sailu stayed outside along with team of policemen.
The mediator, Bedarakota Danaiah, owner of New Medwin Diagnostic Centre in Choutuppal, introduced Swathi to Dr E. Prashanthi and her husband Dr E. Babu Sridhar, both of whom carry out the test which is illegal if it is done to determine the sex of the foetus.
Following the test, Priyanka, as the policewoman called herself, was informed that the baby was a female. She immediately informed the team waiting outside and the two doctors were arrested.
During the investigation it was found that the two doctors were not qualified to practice, and were charging Rs 14,000 per test. A case under Sections 420 and 406 of the Indian Penal Code was registered against them both.
In another undercover operation, credible information was passed on to the Uppal police that the tests were being conducted at Sri Krishna Multi Specialty Hospital in Uppal. Sub Inspector A. Krishnaiah, and a pregnant policewoman asked Dr Umameshwari and her husband Dr A. Chandra Shekar to conduct the test, for which the charge was `7,500. After the test, the doctors disclosed that it was a baby boy and were arrested.
The two women cops and wife of the constable all have delivered now. The reports of the doctors came true for all of them. The trio was felicitated for their risky decoy operation. Rachakonda police refused to divulge their names citing security concerns.
Speaking to this newspaper, Additional DCP, SHE teams, Rachakonda S.K. Saleema said the police gathered gathered inputs that many couples were terminating their pregnancy after the doctors disclosed the gender.
“Women in the eighth month of pregnancy also aborted the foetus, it is growing problem,” Ms Saleema said. “As a team we planned to crack down on these hospitals and scanning centres. Two pregnant women constables and the wife of a constable volunteered, and they were provided support.”
The special operation was approved by Rachakonda polcie commissioner Mahesh Bhagwat who told the police that ensuring the safety of the three volunteers was a matter of priority.
Ms Saleem said, “With the effort of the three and the supporting staff, decoy operations were carried out against diagnostic centres and hospitals and we registered four prenatal Ddiagnostic techniques cases. The operation led to the arrest six doctors from multi speciality hospitals at Uppal, Medipally, Choutuppal and Ibrahimpatnam.”
