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2 booked for forcing wives to take sex-determination tests in Patiala
On Thursday, a team of the Barnala health department had found two pregnant women at the illegal sex-determination centre during a raid and arrested a former Patiala health department employee and her aide from the spot.
Two days after an illegal sex-determination racket was busted in Patiala, two persons were booked for forcing their wives to undergo sonography to find the sex of the foetus.
One of the accused, Jaspal Singh, has been arrested while the other, identified as Surinder Singh, will be nabbed soon, police said on Saturday.
The duo has been booked under Section 24 of the Pre Natal Diagnostic Techniques (PNDT) Act and sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
On Thursday, a team of the Barnala health department had found two pregnant women at the illegal sex-determination centre during a raid and arrested a former Patiala health department employee and her aide from the spot.
One of the pregnant women had already taken the abortion pills after ascertaining the sex of the foetus, the FIR stated. She has been admitted to the Government Mata Kaushalya Hospital.
Patiala civil surgeon Dr Raminder Kaur said the doctors had to abort the baby as she had already taken the pills given by accused Menna Rani, who was running the sex-determination centre.
In such cases, the husband or relative of the pregnant woman is booked under the PNDT Act, she said.
Dr Kaur added, “We have given strict instructions to all senior medical officers in the district to keep a vigil to curb such activities in the district.”
Amandeep Singh, station house officer, Urban Estate Police station, said, “Three of the four persons booked have already been arrested. The fourth will be arrested soon.”
