In a dramatic twist in a case of baby theft from Calcutta National Medical College and Hospital (CNMCH), the police has recovered the stolen newborn from a childless couple’s house in Karaya area in a successful operation on Sunday evening.
The main accused, Nilofer, 30, who had stolen the baby, was arrested along with her husband Sheikh Raju. The couple had kept the new-born at their third-floor rented flat at Broad Street. Nilofer’s mother was detained. The three were interrogated by deputy commissioner of police (eastern suburban division) Satyajit Bandopadhyay and the detective department officers at the Beniapukur police station.
Nilofer told that she wanted to experience motherhood as they have been childless for the last 10 years and she has suffered miscarriage eight times. Her version was, however, verified to check her involvement with any baby theft racket. She further disclosed of doing a recce of the hospital for four days and then targeting the patient, Kaniz Fatima for two days, sources added.
The recovered newborn was admitted at the nursery ward of CNMCH. His condition is stable. Ms Fatima and her husband Wasim Sheikh identified their son.
This development came after the DD released the sketch of a female suspect and after seeing which Nilofer’s neighbours got suspicious. On their questioning, she claimed of adopting the newborn. Dissatisfied, the locals informed the Karaya police which in turn alerted the Beniapukur police under which the hospital falls.
Meanwhile, rubbing salt to the wounds of family members of two patients who became victims of negligence at two government-run hospitals, chief minister Mamata Banerjee’s health department officially gave clean chit to the respective institutions — CNMCH and Chittaranjan Shishu Sadan — on Sunday and instead accused the patients’ relatives for the incidents of theft.
State health secretary Sanjay Mitra blamed a relative of Kaniz Fatima for the theft of her newborn from the CNMCH on January 13.