Six held for selling 6-month-old girl in Kannagi Nagar

Chennai: Six people, including the parents of a six-month-old girl, were arrested for selling their child for a sum of 2.20 lakh at Kannagi Nagar on Wednesday.The accused have been identified as S Sriju, 27, his wife S Vinisha, 23, S Sarala, 51, S Sivaranjani, 22, S Sagayamari, 39, and P Sumathi, 35. According to police, Sriju and Vinisha are the infant's parents, while Sarala is Sriju's mother.Investigations revealed that Sriju is unemployed, while Vinisha works as housekeeping staff at a private company in Kannagi Nagar. The couple have two children and their third daughter was born in May. Soon after, Vinisha contacted her friend Sivaranjani to find a buyer and she in turn sought help from her mother-in-law, Sagayamari.Sagayamari informed Sumathi, a flower vendor, to find a suitable buyer. Sumathi contacted Shanthini and Niyamuthulla, an electrician from Tiruvannamalai, who had earlier asked her to find a child, as they were childless for the past 15 years.The couple took the child in Aug after paying 1 lakh as an advance. The sale came to light when Niyamuthulla failed to pay the balance. Sriju threatened to tell the police. Neighbours who overheard the quarrel alerted the Chengalpet Child Welfare Committee. Acting on the CWC's complaint, police arrested all six under the Child Abduction Act and the Juvenile Justice Act. They were remanded in Puzhal Central Prison. The child was rescued and placed under the custody of the CWC. Investigation is on.