Hyderabad: New developments have come forward in the surrogacy scam being run at Shrishti Fertility Centre, with four more FIRs being lodged by the Gopalapuram police, bringing the total number of cases to six so far.
On the other hand, a female doctor linked to the racket has also been arrested after being detained at the Hyderabad airport on the night of Monday, August 4. So far, 17 have been arrested in the cases filed.
According to reports, at least four more couples have come forward alleging that they were cheated out of lakhs by the fertility centre, including an NRI couple, hinting at the transnational reach of the racket.
Meanwhile, a female doctor, allegedly linked to the case, was arrested by the police at the Rajiv Gandhi International Airport (RGIA) in Hyderabad. The police had reportedly been tracking her movements and were finally able to nab her while she was trying to return to Vishakhapatnam.
The police teams are still searching for other suspects who went underground after the racket was unearthed.
Illegal surrogacy scam in Hyderabad
The surrogacy racket came to light on July 26, when the Gopalapuram police raided the fertility centre following a complaint from a Rajasthani couple stating that the baby they received through surrogacy from the centre was not biologically related to them.
Dr Namrata has been named the prime accused in the case, and several arrests have already been made, including the biological parents of the baby that was given to the Rajasthani couple.
Police conducted late-night raids at the fertility centre, seized documents and also found 17 sperm donors and 11 egg donors. They also observed unregistered ultrasound equipment, an operating theatre, laparoscopic and IVF devices, unlicensed drugs, and liquid nitrogen cylinders on the premises.
During questioning, staff revealed they had been illegally collecting and transporting sperm and eggs to Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh in collaboration with a firm named Indian Sperm Tech near Secunderabad East Metro Station.
Officials confirmed the clinic was not registered in the National or State ART & Surrogacy Registry, and its activities thus became illegal under the Assisted Reproductive Technology (Regulation) Act, 2021. The fertility centre was sealed, and a case was registered.
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