Midwife held for carrying out sex-selective abortion

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, March 4

The Health Department has nabbed an alleged midwife red-handed while conducting a sex-selective abortion late last night. The team has also recovered a three-month-old female foetus, blood-soaked clothes, instruments used in the abortion and some medicines from the house of the suspect, Amrik Kaur, a resident of Mohalla Rasoolpur Kallar, near Jaura Fatak.

The suspect has been arrested and a case has been registered against her at the Mohakampura police station.

District Health and Family Welfare Officer RS Sethi, who led the operation, said: “We had received an anonymous call that a woman performs sex-selective abortions and could be nabbed red-handed.”

He said the health team, along with the police, was deployed outside the suspect’s house at around 4 pm yesterday. Other persons in the team included Nirmal Singh, SMO, Mannawala; Bharti Dhawan, medical officer, Ranjit Avenue; and Sub Inspector, Mohkampura, Harsimrat Kaur.

“The team found nothing suspicious but around 9 pm, some activity started. When the team entered the house, the abortion had already been conducted and the foetus was lying there,” said Dr Sethi.

Preliminary investigations revealed that Baljit Kaur, a resident of Lalpura village in Tarn Taran district, had paid Rs 20,000 to Amrik Kaur, which included the money for getting a sex determination test done. “We would also investigate that where was the ultrasound scan conducted and about other persons who were involved in the nexus,” he said.

Health officials said the patient, Baljit Kaur, had two daughters and as they wished a boy, they went for the sex determination test and later abortion.

Civil Surgeon Prabhdeep Kaur Johal said conducting sex determination tests and sex-selective abortions was illegal under the Pre Conception-Pre Natal Diagnostic Techniques Act.