After arresting the alleged main person in the trafficking network in Telangana, Gujarat police dismantled another child trafficking scheme. This network, supposedly called the ‘Murugan Gang’, is accused of kidnapping and selling babies and very young kids in Gujarat, Delhi, Telangana and Maharashtra. Rescuing the children and arresting others are both happening now, according to investigators.
Investigation that led to the bust
The investigation got more intense after a four-year-old boy was kidnapped from Vadgam in the Banaskantha district. Police found the boy on April 6th and arrested two people at the same time. That arrest led to a larger investigation to see if the kidnapping was connected to something bigger.
Questioning the first people arrested showed they were linked to a trafficking network that operates in multiple states. Police used technology to follow communications and money movements. These clues pointed to a main suspect who was thought to be in Telangana, and that’s why a joint effort was made to arrest him.
Prashant Sumbe, the police superintendent of Banaskantha, said finding the main suspect depended on tracking and analyzing information. Police worked with teams in other states to confirm where people were going. The investigation combined police work done in the area with examining digital information to understand how far the network reached and how it worked.
Arrests and identified suspects
Bodashu Nagraju (also known as Murugan), along with his partners Kasrapu Tirupathi and Keleti Gangarajan, were arrested. All three reportedly live in Telangana. They’ve been arrested and taken to Palanpur for questioning.
Investigators say the arrests were based on both technology and what earlier suspects said. Officials say those arrested are being questioned about the kidnapping and selling of children, who their helpers are, and how they moved the children from one state to another.
Modus operandi of the Murugan Gang
At first, the main suspect arranged for women to have IVF (in vitro fertilization) treatment. He put together women who couldn’t get pregnant with women who would help, and organized trips to the clinic for a fee of 5,000 to 6,000 rupees. This gave him a way to make contact with people and a way to hide what he was really doing.
But over time, police say he started focusing on selling newborns, which makes a lot more money. The gang is accused of getting babies within 24 to 48 hours of being born and then selling them for a high price to people locally and in other states. Kidnappings and illegally moving the babies were part of this.
The network had local helpers who got babies from hospitals and neighborhoods and then transported them across state lines. This involved helping with medical procedures, manipulating people, and a planned trafficking system. Officials are now following the money and the middlemen to find everyone in the network.
Scale of trafficking and victims found
Police know the children the gang sold came from several states. At first, they found at least five cases, and more questioning revealed sales of two children each from Gujarat and Maharashtra, three from Telangana, and one from Delhi. Police are still checking these numbers.
They are still trying to locate and rescue the children who were trafficked. Officials say their first priority is to get the children back quickly, give them medical care, and put them in the care of child protective services. The goal of the investigation is to return the children to their legal families or find them good care and help.
Next steps and legal implications
Child trafficking is a very serious crime with heavy punishments according to Indian law. Authorities say the investigation will expand to find and arrest other people in the network, including the local helpers and anyone at hospitals that helped move the children.
Police are working with child welfare organizations, hospitals and police in other states. The investigation will likely be complicated and will require careful work with the law and morals to gather proof, protect the children and make sure people are prosecuted. Officials have asked the public to report anything that seems strange about offers or sales involving babies or children.
